NEARING the end of a bleak competitive year, John Daly believes that by removing the "never, ever" block from his drink problem, he can become a tournament winner once more. The latest instalment in the saga of the self confessed alcoholic is happening here at Chateau Elan, where the $1.9 million Sarazen Open begins this morning.
The reformed Wild Thing can reflect on relatively modest earnings of only $173,557, which have left him languishing in 121st position in the final US money list - his worst since 1990 (230th) when he played in only three events. Yet he remains a major draw in this event for which he qualified as last year's British Open champion.
The field of 100 competitors from 65 countries includes four Irishmen - Padraig Harrington (Spanish Open), Paul McGinley (Austrian Open), Philip Walton (1995 English Open) and Raymond Burns (1994 Norwegian Open). They will be challenging for prize money of $342,000 for the winner, $205,200 for second and $129,200 for third.
As it happens, the first two placings offer a bigger cash reward than any Irishman has won at tournament level. The highest so far was £125,000 captured by Ronan Rafferty in the 1992 Palm Meadows Cup in Australia, though the £25,000 won by Christy O'Connor in the 1970 John Player Classic equates to more than £190,000 at current values.
Confidence, rather than cash, will be Daly's prime consideration, however, as he joins a fields that includes the holder Frank Nobilo, Fred Couples, Jack Nicklaus, Davis Love, Nick Price, Scott Hoch and the newly crowned Volvo Masters champion, Mark McNulty. "When you re not playing good, it makes it even tougher to be the way people want me to be," he lamented.
Essentially, he was putting his own spin on a statement issued in conjunction with the USPGA Tour early this month, to the effect that he was back drinking again after three years on the wagon. Here with his wife, Paulette, and 16 month old daughter, Sierra, he admitted: "I know it's dangerous, very dangerous, but I feel that my recent consumption of alcohol has been made to appear like it used to be, which was crazy, he said.
Daly went on: "The truth is that I've had maybe six beers since August 4th . . . maybe 12 beers. I'm looking at it like, I basically stopped, but I haven't quit. Saying that I want to quit means forever, but I don't know if I can do that. The good thing is that I know deep in my heart that it could become a problem."
Daly is aware he's playing with fire that he is flying in the face of expert opinion which claims that it is never possible for an alcoholic to resume social drinking. Yet he insists: "I can't say never. When you win the British Open, it's real easy to say it. But when you go a year without playing worth a damn, it starts to pound away at you.
Perhaps he will find the peace he seeks in this idyllic resort, an hour's drive north of Atlanta. It contains 63 holes of golf, including a nine hole par 3 course. The stretch being used for this week's event is the so called Legends Course, which has been based on design suggestions from Sarazen, Sam Snead and Kathy Whitworth.
After competing in yesterday's pro am in which, by his own admission, his short game was disappointing, McGinley said: "It's an outstanding course but one that takes a bit of knowing. I'm glad I have now played it twice, mainly because of the clubbing problems imposed by the hilly nature of the terrain."
His win in Austria last August has given McGinley the confidence to believe that he is now capable of competing with the best.
Whether Daly can still do so, however, is an entirely different matter. "I was scared the last three years - scared of doing something wrong instead of being John," he said. "I think now I can be John in a more mature and good way." Time will tell.
