John Daly Makes Unwanted History After Carding A 19 At Champions Tour Event

The two-time Major winner produced a 14-over-par score at the par 5 12th, with Daly's 19 featuring seven penalty drops at Minnehaha Country Club

John Daly hits a tee shot with a driver
(Image credit: Getty Images)

We've all had moments to forget on the golf course, but perhaps not as bad as John Daly's first round at the Sanford International.

Taking place on the PGA Tour Champions circuit, Daly produced a three-over-par front nine before a bogey at the 10th was followed by a par at the 11th.

However, it was the par 5 12th where the two-time Major winner made the headlines for all the wrong reasons...

John Daly's caddie throws a club to him

Daly at the 18th hole during the first round of the Sanford International

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Playing the par 5, it's unclear as to how Daly produced a 14-over-par 19, due to the fact the PGA Tour Champions does not have the ShotLink system used on the PGA Tour.

What we do know is that, according to the website, it involved a tee shot that found the 'primary rough' and, from there, a total of seven penalty shots occurred before the 59-year-old eventually finished out.

Originally, the score was a 12-over-par 17 but, later on, it was changed to a 14-over-par 19, with it the highest score on a hole in Champions Tour history.

Following the 14-over score, which took the American from four-over-par to 18-over-par, Daly did find a birdie and bogey over the remaining holes to shoot an 18-over-par 88 at Minnehaha Country Club.

In fact, the score of 19 surpassed Daly's record score on one hole when, back in 1998 at the Bay Hill Invitational, he made a 13-over-par 18 at the par 5 sixth hole. At that event, he hit a 3-wood into the water six straight times.

The slight upside is that the 88 was two shots less than his highest score on the PGA Tour, which came at the Valspar Championship in 2014; however, at this week's Sanford International, Daly was paired with the first round leader, Angel Cabrera, who was 24 shots better than his playing partner following a six-under 64.

Matt Cradock
Staff Writer

Matt joined Golf Monthly in February 2021 covering weekend news, before also transitioning to equipment and testing. After freelancing for Golf Monthly and The PGA for 18 months, he was offered a full-time position at the company in October 2022 and continues to cover news and social media.

Taking up the game when he was just seven years of age, Matt made it into his county squad just a year later and continues to play the game at a high standard, with a handicap of around 2-4. To date, his best round came in 2016, where he shot a six-under-par 66 having been seven-under through nine holes. His favorite player is Rory McIlroy, despite nearly being struck by his second shot at the 17th during the 2015 BMW PGA Championship.

Matt’s current What’s In The Bag?

Driver: Honma TW747, 8.75°

Fairway Wood: Ping G430 LST 15°, 19°

Irons: TaylorMade P.7CB

Wedges: Cleveland 588 RTX 2.0 Tour Satin, 50°, 56°, 60°

Putter: Cleveland TFI 2135 Satin Cero

Ball: Titleist Pro V1

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