# Stuart Appleby calls John Daly "a walking train wreck"



## Surtees (Sep 11, 2007)

_AUSTRALIAN golfer Stuart Appleby has questioned the value of bringing John Daly to the Sportsbet Australian Masters at Huntingdale this week.

Appleby described the troubled American as "a walking train wreck" - the subject of morbid fascination for fans. 

"John Daly is unique. As players, we only wish that he put a little bit more time into his game and less time into ruining his personal life. He would be a drawcard, not just a freak card, because he's so gifted, it's a joke," Appleby said.

"I guess John is financially very accessible, he's not very demanding, so it's not hard to get someone.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Walking headline: Daly aims straight 
Australian Masters: Senior sees out his 30th 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"I guess it's dollars and cents, people through the gate, TV. And he's a good guy, he doesn't put his foot in his mouth." 

The world No. 35 recalled the nerve-wracking experience of playing alongside Daly in the first two rounds of his Masters debut in 1992. 

"John came out to Australia because he was the (1991) US PGA champion.

"He was a freak, no one else played golf like John Daly. And probably no one else through that period, unfortunately, had a bigger reputation for having more off-course issues than anyone else in the game," he said. 

"That has got to the stage now where that's who John Daly is. His game hasn't been the level that he wants it. But I don't think John is here because of his world ranking. He's a walking train wreck, and unfortunately people turn their heads to watch a train wreck. 

"It's symptomatic of world golf because he still runs around the world. He's Europe, he's Asia, he's in Australia. It's not like we're desperate - everyone is doing the same thing." 

Daly, whose world ranking is 692, shot an eight-under 62 final round to finish 17th at last week's Hong Kong Open. 

And Appleby hopes everyone is talking about the beefy American's exploits on Huntingdale's greens and fairways this week. 

"His history in Australia hasn't been brilliant, so there's certainly a lot of question marks. Is he a liability or a help to a tournament? Depending on how he behaves. Ultimately, you hope he plays like a champ. He played pretty well last week," Appleby said.

"To get John Daly somewhere near in contention, he will heighten the tournament by far. But John Daly is a big risk, no doubt. 

"The saving grace for John is that he's a good man. His heart has got him in so far in the sponsors' eyes." 

Appleby said he was bewildered as a young pro by Daly's lifestyle as the pair walked Huntingdale together 16 years ago. 

"That's when I first got some inclination that he had some form of drinking problem. I was just a teetotaller and he talked about drinking. I didn't make much more of it and then I asked him what he did for dinner and he said McDonald's," he said. 

"And I'm thinking I'm trying to live the cleanest, straightest life and he's one of the world's best players. I was really confused what he was telling me. Then it all came out." 

Appleby, mentally refreshed after a two-month break, was among the early practice starters at Huntingdale yesterday as he yearns to win a Masters crown. 

"If it didn't mean anything, I couldn't give a hoot. But it does," Appleby said. 

Appleby cursed a bungled final hole that prevented him getting into a playoff with Aaron Baddeley and Daniel Chopra 12 months ago. _

Source the Hearld Sun 25th Nov

This is in the lead up to the Austalian Master at Huntingdale this week. Should be a pretty good I will hopefully get to watch some of it and I wont have to sit up at all silly hours to see it.


----------



## Surtees (Sep 11, 2007)

Just a follow up on the Australian Masters

_Pampling wins Masters
01-12-08 
Rod Pampling Queensland's Rod Pampling has defeated Victorian Marcus Fraser on the third hole of a sudden-death playoff at Huntingdale to claim the 2008 Australian Masters gold jacket.

The pair was tied at twelve-under after the regulation 72 holes and went to the 18th to sort themselves out.

Both parred the first two playoff holes but Fraser's bogey at the next when he missed from two-metres opened the door for 39-year-old Pampling to tap in for his first Australasian Tour victory since the 1999 Canon Challenge.

"I played great today and I hit a lot of quality shots and that's all I kept telling myself every time we got back to the 18th tee was, 'hit a shot, hit a shot'," Pampling said.

"There was no stress at any stage."

A disastrous late double bogey halted overnight leader and tournament favourite Robert Allenby's challenge in its tracks.

Allenby was devastated after signing his card for a one-over 73 which left him at nine-under in outright third place.

Pampling, who fired a final round 67 and Fraser (65) jousted for the lead for much of the back nine on Sunday.

Starting the day at five-under, Fraser set the tone with six birdies on the front nine to be out in 30.

Striding the course like a man on a mission, the 30-year-old gave himself every chance by knocking his approaches at one, two, six and eight within about five feet.

An errant drive cost him a shot at the 400-metre par-four 11th, but he rebounded with successive birdies at 13 and 14 before finishing with four straight pars.

In the clubhouse at 276 (12-under), Fraser, who tied for 10th at last year's Masters, knew this time he would be thereabouts.

Faced with a wait of 40 minutes or so to see what Pampling could come up with, Fraser spent much of the time trying keep his wife, who's eight months pregnant, from becoming too excited.

Fraser revealed later that Carlie had already been to hospital earlier in the day and returned there after play had finished showing signs of an early labour.

"I just hope that she's alright and the baby's OK, that's the priority," Fraser said.

"Golf's not even in the picture."

Fraser was thankful just to be competing after straining his back competing in Spain seven weeks ago and credited his coach Denis McDade for getting his game into top shape.

"The last two days is the best golf I've played by a country mile - I feel like I'm back to the way I should be playing," he said.

"I reckon I'm going to get my hands on that trophy one day."

Pampling, who started the day at minus-seven, three strokes behind overnight leaders Allenby and Michael Sim, made his move at the 490-metre par-five seventh, when he sank a 10-metre putt for eagle.

He got to 12-under with a birdie at the 10th but, try as he might, couldn't pick up the single stroke he needed over the closing eight holes to win in regulation.

The 39-year-old, dressed like a bandit from a B-Grade western in black from head to toe, had makeable birdie putts at 16, 17 and, to a lesser extent, 18 and squandered the lot.

Two-time Masters champion Allenby's challenge foundered with a horrible five at the 161-metre par-three 15th that was almost too bad to be true.

At the time the 37-year-old was just one stroke off the pace and looking to make something happen, but the train wreck that followed was not the something he had in mind.

Allenby needed three shots from two separate bunkers to get the ball onto the green before somehow managing to hole his putt from all of 10 metres for a double-bogey.

His campaign unravelled, a distraught Allenby stopped to embrace his seriously ill mother, Sylvia, who had been following his progress in a golf cart.

Playing partner and overnight joint-leader Michael Sim stumbled on the front nine when he twice landed the ball in the gallery en route to a bogey at the 322-metre par-four second and dropped a shot at the next to slip to eight under.

His prospects of a breakthrough win evaporated altogether when his chip from beside the green at the 314-metre par-four eighth skipped past the hole and rolled into a bunker.

Rallying strongly following his disastrous 76 on Saturday, Tim Clark of South Africa, who led the tournament outright at the half-way mark, fired a feisty 67 to finish in a tie for fourth at eight-under with Nathan Green (70) and Alexander Noren of Sweden (68)._

source golfaustralia.org


----------



## broken tee (Jan 13, 2008)

*Daly*

Luke: nice post. I was headed for Seattle so I didn't watch the open, but what I do know about Daly I think Stuart is right. Daly has a heart of gold but booze, the ladies and gambling are hurting him.


----------



## Surtees (Sep 11, 2007)

thanks Bob he has had some good form lately in some asian match but he failed to even make the cut after thrusday and fridays round. I think he is still going to play in the Australian Open in Sydney so we'll see how he goes there.


----------



## broken tee (Jan 13, 2008)

Surtees said:


> thanks Bob he has had some good form lately in some asian match but he failed to even make the cut after thrusday and fridays round. I think he is still going to play in the Australian Open in Sydney so we'll see how he goes there.


I thought I was watching the open in the hotel room that was taking place in Melborne.:dunno:


----------



## Surtees (Sep 11, 2007)

Nope that was the Australian Masters the open is in Sydney from the 11-14 Dec.


----------

