Daly and Tiger: At PGA, the past was present
TULSA, Okla. — One of the best things about golf is you never get old. We’re speaking virtually, of course. Life is all about playing hide-and-seek with Father Time.
But in what other sport does a 50-year-old like Phil Mickelson win one of the big events, or a 46-year-old like Tiger Woods make a comeback?
Some of the people we used to watch, we’re still watching. Such as John Daly, who because he once won the event and is a lifetime invitee not only is in this 104th PGA Championship but, for a few minutes in Thursday’s opening round, was in the lead.
That’s because he was in the opening threesome and, like those “grip it and rip it” days of yore, birdied the first and fifth holes.
You knew it wasn’t going to last, and it didn’t. In a stretch of three holes, he tumbled from seventh to 51st, eventually sinking into the 70s after a 2-over-par 72.
That was two strokes better than Woods, who after his impressive return from the near-fatal car accident to make the cut in last month’s Masters couldn’t regain that bit of magic.
At least Tiger, who deserves the listing professional as well as a major champion, was willing to explain what went wrong: the irons were off target.
At the end of his round, the 56-year-old Daly waved off would-be interviewers and silently slipped away.
Which doesn’t make sense when you’re trying to peddle various endorsed products, if not necessarily yourself.
Golf, as in most every sporting activity from checkers to jump rope, has chosen to associate with some sort of gambling operation. According to a story in USA Today, somebody made a bet on Daly that would pay off $100,000 if John looked great with 17 holes to go.
How John looks physically is another issue. After starting cancer treatments, he stopped shaving or visiting a bar. His flowing all-white beard and locks make him seem like a character in an old western movie, rather than a two-time major champion.
Seeing Daly playing the game brought him to our attention. He only got into the 1991 PGA when someone dropped out, the final qualifier — and he won.
The victory transcended golf. He was on TV. He was at major league stadiums hitting tee shots into the great unknown.
And then Daly’s life, a mixture of booze, bogeys and domestic battles, came apart. Then conveniently, perhaps both for golf and for Daly, along came Tiger.
That Woods and Daly after their quite different setbacks were able to play at Southern Hills is, even ignoring the wager and other incidentals, a show of persistence. They both have endured pain, if of different types.
For Tiger there’s the ongoing, if impossible, attempt to duplicate the brilliance to which we had grown accustomed.
“I did not hit a lot of good iron shots,” Woods said of his Thursday round. “I drove it well, but my iron shots were not very good. I didn't get the ball very close. I got off to a great start and didn't keep it going. I really didn't give myself any looks for birdie.
“I was struggling trying to get the ball on the green, and I missed quite a few iron shots both ways. It was a frustrating day.”
Asked about his condition, Woods said, “Yeah, my leg is not feeling as good as I would like it to be. We'll start the recovery process and get after (Friday).”
Thanks, Tiger. Wish John was just as communicative.