John Daly has never won at Pinehurst – he even once lost to a sandbagger (his word) in a made-for-TV event despite shooting 67 – but he did have one of the most memorable shots in Pinehurst lore.
After missing the 8th green in the final round of the 1999 U.S. Open, Daly three times tried to putt the ball up the hill and onto the green, only to have the ball roll back to him. Frustrated, Daly walked up as the ball was rolling back toward him a third time, famously whacking the ball as it was still moving.
It all led to an 11 on the 8th, a final round 83 and a trunk slam from Daly in the parking lot. Of course, he didn’t leave before a leveling a few shots at the USGA.
Daly apologized just days later, but, as we found out after he concluded a round on Pinehurst No. 4 during the Sheetz for the Kidz fundraiser on Monday, Daly still doesn’t like the hole location from that day.
He’s never lost his love for Pinehurst No. 2, though…or for getting a dig in whenever he can.
We found that out, too.