John Daly's request to use buggy at The Open has divided opinion - is walking an integral part of golf?
The traditionalists will not approve, but the R&A is considering awarding John Daly the same dispensation he received here to drive a cart at The Open Championship in July.
"We have received a request from John Daly for permission to use a buggy at The Open and it is currently under consideration,” a R&A spokesman said yesterday. The 53-year-old confirmed his ultimatum after posting a 76 to miss the cut here at the USPGA on 11-over.
"I'm not one that wants to ride all the time," Daly said. ”It's just something that if I don't, I'm not going to be able to play, I won't be able to finish. It’s very awkward [to use a cart] and it’s almost to a point where it’s embarrassing. I enjoy playing and I’m still competitive. It’s not really ego, as a former champion [of both the USPGA and the Open] I feel obligated to play. I feel committed.”
Daly estimated that because of the osteoarthritis in his knee he would have been able to complete no more four holes at Bethpage. However, his application to the PGA of America was approved under the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) meaning that the 1991 champion became only the second golfer in the history of the majors to be spared the walk.
At the 2012 US Open, Casey Martin used a buggy, but the then 40-year-old’s case was much different. Martin has Klippel-Trénaunay syndrome, an incurable condition which could lead to amputation of his right leg. In 2001, Martin had won a lawsuit against the PGA Tour allowing to use a cart during competition.
Martin, who was on the same college team as Tiger Woods and who is now the head coach at the University of Oregon, provoked widespread sympathy throughout the locker room. The same cannot be said about Daly.
Woods is a long-time friend of Daly’s, but seemed less than impressed, making reference to his 2008 US Open victory by saying: "Well, I walked with a broken leg.” Sir Nick Faldo is clear in his own mind on the issue. “I think walking is an integral part of being a pro golfer,” he said.
However, the PGA of America’s chief championships officer Kerry Haigh maintained that the correct decision had been reached, despite Bethpage Black being a public course where buggies are forbidden.
"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 said on Tuesday.
"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."
Last summer, Daly was not granted a buggy waiver for the US Senior Open and it will be intriguing to see how the R&A responds. The spectacle Daly created here will probably not work in his favour. Constantly smoking a cigarette and sipping from a McDonald’s cup, Daly, who the 1995 Open at St Andrews, was a star attraction for the galleries.
Whether he would be so ecstatically received at Portrush, a club that also does not permit buggies, must be doubted. For now the Wild Thing must wait and hope. "Ireland is big on the ADA, as most countries should be,” Daly said. “I wouldn’t like to miss playing in The Open, that is for certain.”
