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via Getty

via Getty

John Daly is definitely one of the most outspoken people you’ll ever meet on the PGA Tour. The golfer hardly hesitates while explicitly pointing out anything that he finds wrong. And his undying habit of wanting things his way has landed him into various controversies throughout his career. However, it is not always Daly who initiates controversies. There was a time when, during a tournament, a player’s father decided to come forward and teach Daly a lesson for something he thought the golf legend was guilty of. And it took no time for the situation to turn into an ugly fight between him and Daly.

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When John Daly got into an ugly fight with a spectator

John Daly has made several records in his career on the PGA Tour. The golf star was once the longest hitter in professional golf and it was no big deal for him to hit distant shots during his tournaments. But there was a time when hitting powerful shots almost became a problem for Long John.

28-year-old Daly was playing at the World Series of Golf in 1994 when things got a bit twisted. The golfer shot an 83 in the final round, but before the match ended, something else happened that Daly would never forget. According to what the witnesses said, the golfer was grabbed from the back by another player’s father, 62, and it led to a heavy exchange of words between the two.

Read More: WATCH: In a Crazy Stunt, John Daly Goes for a Wild Swim at Donald Trump’s Golf Course

According to the man, Bob Roth, Daly was guilty of hitting the golf ball into his son’s group twice on purpose. It turned out that his son Jeffrey Roth was in the duo ahead of Daly. Things got pretty heated up between the two until Daly and Sr. Roth fell to the ground. And after a brief session of wrestling, the crowd managed to separate the two. Luckily, Daly was unhurt, but Roth’s elbow was scraped and needed to be bandaged.

Reports suggested that Daly was fined £13,000 by the PGA Tour for his actions. Moreover, he was banned for the rest of the season from the tour due to the embarrassing scuffle.

Did Daly press charges against the old man?

Michael Woody, who was the Akron police lieutenant present on the scene explained that he had talked to both the parties and their representatives. Thankfully, none of them wanted to file a case against the other. Hence, no further action was taken by the police. When asked about why he decided to attack Daly, Sr. Roth said“It’s out of proportion now, so it doesn’t need to be expounded upon,”.

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Several witnesses had all kinds of opinions about what actually initiated the fight. Terry Travis, who was caddie to Ikuo Shirahama, said he heard Daly say something to Sr. Roth. He also mentioned pulling Daly away from the fight. “John’s coming out of the clubhouse,” he said, “There’s something said. It looked like John said, ‘Sorry about that,’ and started to walk away. Then the guy grabs him from behind.”

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While on the other hand, Roth’s wife Dolores Roth said it was Daly who provoked her husband. According to her, Sr. Roth asked Daly to “start doing some growing up”, which resulted in Daly cursing at the old man. And that’s when Sr. Roth lost his cool.

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