John Daly is estimated to have lost $90 million gambling and won about $40 million back, for an estimated loss of about $53mil to $54mil dollars.
Pro golfer John Daly said in an interview on ESPN’s Dan Le Batard Show on Tuesday that he once threw $65,000 of his gambling winnings off a bridge in anger. Daly tossed his winnings during an argument with his wife about his gaming habits.
The discussion of the fateful $65k temper tantrum came as John Daly promoted an upcoming 30-for-30 feature on his life. 30-for-30 is an award-winning series of sports documentaries which detail the most famous events of the past couple of generations.
Golf Digest said “Hit It Hard” is the best of the 85 documentaries ESPN has shown. The golf magazine admitted it might be biased, since it is the only film which is about golf. Golf Digest said the documentary had all the elements you would want, but an unspoken theme is the wasted talent. In many ways, John Daly’s life story is one of phenomenal talent and dazzling success contrasted with self-destruction on the golf course and in his personal life. His losses in the casino are legendary.
Lost $50 Million on Gambling
John Daly, who won the 1991 PGA Championship at Crooked Stick Golf Club in Indiana and the 1995 Open Championship at the Old Course at St. Andrews, Scotland, has never been shy about his gambling habits. Daly claims he’s lost about $50 million gambling in his lifetime.
Therefore, it is probably no surprise that Daly’s wife might get angry with him from time to time for gambling. According to the 2-time major winner, he had no sympathy for his wife’s complaints.
Daly’s Argument with Wife over Casino Gambling
As he told Dan Le Batard, “I won like 65 grand in the casino, and I said, ‘If you are going to yell and scream at me about this.’ I threw it over the bridge going over to Memphis from Arkansas. Threw all the money out the window and said, ‘You know what? If you want that money, you can go find it. But let me tell you something: You don’t have a job. You’re not working. I’m supporting you. I’m paying all the bills.’”
Daly, who played golf at the University of Arkansas before making it onto the PGA Tour, continued, “It’s like that old story of a woman griping at a husband, saying, ‘You know, our lives just aren’t working out very good.’ They’re used to glamorous dinners, and all this stuff.”
The McDonald’s Analogy
Apparently, the golfer’s friends got involved in the spouses’ debate. Choosing to turn the local McDonald’s into a point-making tool, Daly said a “buddy took her to a McDonald’s drive-thru and got her two cheeseburgers and some french fries and a soda and says, ‘OK, this is how you can live from now on if that’s the way you want it.’”
“And, that’s kind of the point of the story is: We support them [wives] and pay for everything, but yet, that time Sherrie wasn’t really appreciating what I was doing for her.”
John Daly’s Four Marriages
As one might expect, John and Sherrie Daly got a divorce in 2010. She was the then 44-year old golfer’s fourth wife. That is the last time John Daly was married, so it is possible the anecdote he told the ESPN host was one of those events which taught Daly that marriage might not have been for him.
Of course, John Daly has exhibited other impulse control issues over the years. Though he once criticized former swing coach Butch Harmon for outing his alcoholism, Daly has been outspoken about his alcohol addiction.
Ends His Drinking Habit
After an arrest outside a Hooters in 2008 for public intoxication, Daly decided to get sober. In the 8 years since, he claims he has not taken a drink. Sobriety helped his results on the golf course, which in turn has helped his public reputation.
John Daly’s Career Highlights
John Daly’s outspoken nature won him millions of fans in the 1990s, when he came out of nowhere to win the 1991 PGA tournament. His huge swing, his larger than life personality, and his common man aura led Daly to becoming one of the most popular golfers of the pre-Tiger era. Many saw his PGA victory as a flash in the pan, because the PGA is considered the least of the four golf majors. Then John Daly won the British Open (now The Open) in 1995, cementing his place as a first-rate golfer.
For all the glories on the golf course, John Daly has had his bitter moments, too. At one US Open, he got frustrated with the turtleback greens and knocked his ball into the water in disgust. He later walked off the course in the same round, eventually apologizing to his fans for losing his cool.
30-for-30 Documentary: “Hit It Hard”
The ESPN interview was to promote the upcoming “Hit It Hard” documentary on ESPN’s 30-for-30 program. 30-for-30 tells the most interesting stories in American sports history, so it was only a matter of time before John Daly’s life story was featured. Those wanting to hear more stories about John Daly’s alcohol and gambling addiction, and his many ups-and-downs in golf and in life, should take a look at “Hit It Hard”.
