By MIKE BEAS
The man most qualified to sprinkle dashes of human element into the Tiger-ized and, thus, incredibly droll PGA Tour is 43. We know that’s John Daly’s age. It might also qualify as his waistline, how many cigarettes he smokes a day or his average putt count per 18 holes.
If hard living had its own Mount Rushmore, Daly is a strong candidate to be George Washington, the first face on the left. Forever joining him in rock-faced tribute would be Babe Ruth, Keith Richards and Mickey Mantle. Ruth and Mantle are dead, Richards looks dead and Daly is fortunate he’s not dead.
This past weekend Daly returned to the public eye. Still serving a six-month suspension from the PGA Tour for behavior unflattering to such a buttoned-down industry, a thinner, buzz-cutted Daly placed a respectable 31st at the Spanish Open. He arrived fluorescently attired, thrilled fans with his trademark monster tee shots and at times acted as though he and his putter had never met.
That’s John Daly. You don’t know what you’re going to get, yet you do know you’ll be entertained. When exactly the PGA suspension is to be lifted is something of a cloudy subject because it’s unclear as to when it began. The buzz is that Daly could be reinstated later this month, but June is more likely.
Of course, just because Daly will be back doesn’t guarantee that he’ll be, you know — back. He’s built us up and let us down before, which is part of his mystique. So refreshingly un-PGA is Daly that people can’t help but be drawn to him. With his Arkansas twang and graphite-shafted personality, Daly is the sport’s version of Larry the Cable Guy.
Daly someday paired with fellow shoot-from-the-hip specialist Boo Weekley? Forget about it.
Whenever Daly again walks PGA soil, it won’t be a moment too soon. The Tour badly needs his game, his charisma. Tiger might be the greatest golfer who ever lived, but his personality rivals that of an end table. Furthermore, Phil Mickelson’s All-American family man act is growing stale, and I wouldn’t know any of golf’s next tier — think Geoff Ogilvy, Nick Watney, Zach Johnson and Sean O’Hair — if they were in front of me in a Wal-Mart checkout line.
I would, however, recognize Daly. The carton of smokes and 24-pack of Diet Coke would give it away. Men’s professional golf needs John Daly back. Badly. But only if he leaves his troubled past behind and returns to living up to that enormous potential.
Parting shot
The NBA playoffs … are they over yet?
Sixteen teams is far too many to be making the postseason every year. Raise your hand if you think the Detroit Pistons truly deserved a second season. How about those mighty Philadelphia 76ers and the New Orleans Hornets? Trim the list in half and don’t feel the Eastern and Western conferences need to have equal representation because they don’t.
Under this plan, the west would have sent five franchises to the playoffs this season and the east three. Seed them Nos. 1 through 8 and may the best franchise win.
Never happen, though. Makes entirely too much sense. Oh, and it doesn’t make the league nearly enough money.
Mike Beas is a freelance writer/columnist and Kokomo native who resides in Carmel. He can be reached at mbeas@att.net.
