Golf star smokes, swigs coke on the course, wears erotic clothes and terrified Tiger Woods
John Daly became a cult hero for golf fans in the 1990s and 2000s.
John Daly became one of golf’s most iconic figures during the 1990s and early 2000s. Known for his remarkable long drive and his questionable lifestyle, Daly showed the promise to become one of the best players on the PGA Tour. Express Sport picks out three key highlights from his career.
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Smoking on the course
Daly’s diet, particularly while on the course, has been the stuff of legend since he first broke into golf in 1987. The now-58-year-old would sometimes smoke on the course and has been known to swig at beer and diet coke.
Nicknamed Long John because of his powerful, Happy Gilmore-esque drive, Daly once consumed 21 cigarettes, drank 12 cans of coke and no water at a baking hot PGA Tour event. Golf journalist Will Brinson once claimed he followed Daly around the Wyndham Championship course and counted the cigarettes, coke cans and water consumed by the golfer.
“Followed him for 18 holes, hawking his every move, taking meticulous notes every time he reached for his golf bag, took a bite or a sip or a puff.
“First few holes were just kind of eye opening. By the back nine I realised I was essentially watching someone pitch a perfect game.
“The final tally of literally everything he put into his body over a full 18 holes: 21 cigs, 12 Diet Cokes, 6 packs of Peanut M&M's, 0.0 ounces of water.”
Erotic clothing
In 2014, Daly took to the course wearing overtly bright trousers. It was not unusual for the American to sport eccentric clothing, but fans looked a little closer and noticed an amusing detail.
The trousers depicted minimalist imagery of naked women. Loudmouth, the company that designed the trousers, had the ‘galaxy girls’ trousers listed at £86 (€100) at the time.
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Terrifying Tiger Woods
Had Daly’s lifestyle been slightly better, he may have frequently competed with legendary golfer Tiger Woods for the major honours. Instead, aside from an Open victory at St. Andrew’s, he was unable to keep up with Woods.
Daly once terrified Woods with his diet. During a 42-degree celsius day at the 2007 PGA Championship, Daly revealed to Woods that he had drunk 13 cans of diet coke and no water.
"It was obviously a very different golf course. It was not cold that week," Woods recalled in 2022.
"I remember playing behind JD the first day, which was awesome. It was, what, 109 degrees fahrenheit (42 degrees celsius) I think that first day? And I asked JD how many waters he drank out there. He said, 'No, I had 13 Diet Cokes.'"
