John Daly - Biography

Last Editor: smilingricha				John Daly Biography -   Name : John Daly Date of birth : 28 April,1966 Place of birth : Carmichael, CA Height : 5'10 Weight : 200 lb Occupation : Sports - Golf Nickname : The Lion Full name : John Patrick Daly

John Daly Trivia -

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John Daly Detailed Biography -

John Patrick Daly Jr. was born on April 28, 1966, in Carmichael, California. His parents, Jim and Lou, had already welcomed two children into the world, a girl named Leslie and a boy named Jamie. John was their third and final kid. Jim, an engineer who built and repaired nuclear power plants, spent a lot of time away because of his job. When he was home, his hours were scattershot. Jim sometimes worked all night, then slept all morning and afternoon. For John, Leslie and Jamie, getting quality time with their dad wasn’t easy. The Daly children turned outward and did their own thing. John’s outlet was golf. He discovered the sport as a four-year-old after his father gave him two cut-off clubs. The youngster loved the sport. To stay close to Jim, the Daly family was often forced to move. Their first change of address—to Dardanelle, Arkansas—came after John’s fifth birthday. That’s where—on a local nine-hole layout—his fascination with golf grew to a passion. John never had many friends as a kid, so golf proved the perfect diversion for him. He could play 18 holes by himself, or hook up with a group to fill out a foursome. His playing companions were just as often adults as they were kids his own age. John was a perfectionist. His golf hero was Jack Nicklaus, and he studied his idol for tips to improve his own game. For John, hitting a clean, crisp shot on every swing was the ultimate challenge. In many ways, John’s game mimicked that of Nicklaus, except for the length of his backswing. From an early age, John took the club so far past parallel that he looked like a contortionist. He would then unload on the ball with all the force he could muster. This produced soaring drives and iron shots that never seemed to come down. As a 12-year-old, John was hitting the ball farther the most men. His clubs—a set of Nicklaus MacGregors—were nothing special. Neither were the balls he used, which he often fished out of a nearby pond. But his game was titanic. He regularly out-drove adults, and posted scores much better than theirs. By now, the family had relocated to Locust Grove, Virginia. John often walked the course at Lake of the Woods Country Club in Fredericksburg. He won the men’s championship there in 1978, which prompted club members to forbid kids from entering the tournament ever again. By this time, John had been introduced to another pursuit that would become a pastime of sorts: alcohol. He downed his first beer when he was eight, and next developed a taste for his parents’ homemade wine. But his real predilection was Jack Daniel’s. It was his father’s drink of choice, and after the 14-year-old’s first sip of the Tennessee whiskey at his sister’s wedding, it became his, too. As a youngster, John also played baseball and football. But golf came to overshadow both. First he gave up baseball, then after a few years of high-school football, he walked away from the gridiron, too. John began to think more seriously about a pro golf career as a teenager. After a short stint in Zachary, Louisiana, the the Daly clan settled into a home in Jefferson City, Missouri. In 1983, as a high-school junior in the Show Me State, John showed he had a rare talent on the links. He captured the Missouri High School Tournament and the Missouri Amateur. The following fall Jim and Lou decided to move north to New Hampshire. They told John he could stay with Jamie back in Arkansas if he preferred. He jumped at the opportunity. His life soon revolved around golf and drinking. Once a good student, his grades dropped as afternoons were spent practicing and playing, and every night seemed to be a party. John’s hard-charging lifestyle didn’t hamper his game, however. He won the 1984 Arkansas Amateur, and the Missouri again, relying on his prodigious distance and surprising touch around the greens. Steve Loy, the golf coach at the University of Arkansas, was impressed enough to offer John a half-scholarship. He accepted, and made his way to Fayetteville.