Tiger Woods on John Daly's golf cart: 'I walked on a broken leg'
By Hank Gola
Tiger Woods had the definitive word on John Daly being allowed to ride a cart this week: "I walked on a broken leg," he said, harkening back to his playoff win over Rocco Mediate at the 2008 U.S. Open.
But Kerry Haigh, the PGA of America's chief championships officer, explained that Daly qualified for a cart under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
"On all of our entry information for all of our championships, we have a clause for ADA purposes in that any player who has an ADA concern or issue is allowed to apply and give the reasons for the exemption that he or she may want to apply for," Haigh explained. "And in this case, John went through the process, sent in the information that we request of any and all players that this applies to. We have a committee that meet, which includes a medical expert, and they review the information, and it was agreed that it justified the use of a golf cart for the championship."
Tiger Woods guts out a victory at the 2008 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines. (SANDY HUFFAKER/BLOOMBERG NEWS)
There are no cart paths on the Black Course — it's walking-only for the public golfer who plays it — so Haigh will go over with Daly where he can and can't go.
"Obviously there's some places on this golf course where you can't get a golf cart to," he said. "We try and use common sense, what's reasonable, what's fair for the protection both of the player and those issues as well as the playing of a major championship."
Seth Waugh, the PGA of America CEO, has caddied at Bethpage for his son in competitions so he knows the demanding nature of the golf course.
"I'm sort of all about walking. I much prefer it," Waugh said. "Obviously I'm not trying to make a statement about John. And so where the carts go will be interesting because it's not set up that way. But I can understand why he'd be daunted by trying to walk this."
MY BUDDY, MY CADDIE
Tiger Woods is giving a lot of credit to his caddie, Joe LaCava.
"For him to have had the stick-to-itiveness to be there through some of my really difficult times, he was a great friend," Woods said of LaCava, the Connecticut native (and bigtime Giants fan) who has been on Woods' bag since 2012. "He'd come down, and just to be around. I was really struggling with being able to walk, and he'd come down, he'd drive the car, he'd help me around the house. He was just an incredible, incredible friend."
The two first met when LaCava was caddying for Fred Couples, with whom he won the Masters in 1992. Three years later, a teenaged Woods played a practice round with Couples and Raymond Floyd at the 1995 U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills.
"Joey was one of those guys that said, 'Hey, ask Raymond this, ask Freddy that.' And I was nervous. I was a young little amateur, 19 years old, didn't really know anything."
Woods and LaCava agree on almost everything with one exception.
"We're very competitive. I believe and still will always believe that L.A. is better than New York in sports, and we certainly have that disagreement probably every other hole, and we have a good time about it."
FIXING THE SUNDAY BLUES
Outside of his win at the Players Championship, Rory McIlroy has had his problems on Sundays this year. The latest came two weeks ago at the Wells Fargo Championship at Quail Hollow, where he shot 73 the final day.
"I played okay at Quail Hollow. I was working through a couple of swing things," he explained. "And then on the last day I just made a couple of bad decisions. I think I put too much pressure on myself to take advantage (of holes) seven through 15, and then on the last day, I didn't birdie the seventh hole, I didn't birdie the eighth hole, then I was just pushing a little too hard, and then I made a couple of mental errors on 10 with those chip shots.
"It's almost I need to approach it the opposite way. Let the easier holes take care of themselves and concentrate on the more difficult ones."
I LOVE NEW YORK(ERS)
Dustin Johnson on New York golf fans: "I love the fans up here. They've always been really good to me. You definitely don't want to be on their bad side, though. That's for sure. I don't know why they like me, but they do and so I'm going to try to do everything to keep it that way."
Johnson won the 2011 Barclays at Plainfield Country Club in New Jersey.
BACK KOs VIJAY
Two-time PGA winner Vijay Singh has dropped out of this year's tournament with a back injury.
Singh, 56, finished 43rd in the first senior major of the year, the Regions Tradition, last week. He missed the cut at the Masters and finished 78th in last year's PGA Championship.
J.T. Poston, 68th on the PGA Tour FedEx Cup points list, takes his place.