John Daly Shows No Concern for PGA Championship Title as Bizarre Cigarette Love Excites Fans: ‘Different Breed’

It is no secret that the 58-year-old golfer has an unconventional approach to life as well as his game on the greens. Yes, we are talking exactly about John Daly who has, by now, surprised the whole golfing world with his free-spirited lifestyle. Come 2024, it looks like he didn’t disappoint his fans this time around either, as the senior golfer took to the PGA Championship in his own style.

A tweet was shared by Gabby Herzig, an on-field reporter for The Athletic, on her X handle (formerly Twitter), mentioning what she overheard while walking the last four holes with Daly’s group. The journalist divulged how the senior golfer reportedly smoked “through two packs of cigarettes, four Snickers bars, and two Cokes today at Valhalla.”

The athlete, after teeing off at 8:32 A.M. on Thursday with Lee Hodges and Robert MacIntyre, is currently placed at T155 owing to his first-round score of 11-over par 82 at the par-71 Valhalla Golf Course. Meanwhile, he carded a total of nine bogeys, seven of which came in the front nine, along with a double bogey at the par-4, 17th.

John Daly had turned many heads even before the start of the major when he was spotted smoking a cigarette on the driving range ahead of the PGA Championship on Tuesday. Many in the community, thus, had taken to react to the professional’s actions, with some joking about his physical condition and others dishing out praises for his apathy.

This is not the first time his bizarre habits have been on display. Back in 2016, the PGA Tour Champions Pro had come out candid on his unorthodox diet, which he coupled with the act of smoking cigars. His fans couldn’t help but remember the same as well when they took to comment under the journalist’s tweet.

John Daly sporting rookie numbers at Valhalla

Back in 2023, Will Brinson, a senior Sports Writer from CBS, recounted how he followed Daly during a practice round of the 2008 Wyndham Championship. The journalist followed his move for all 18 holes and took meticulous notes. The result? “The final tally of everything he put into his body over a full 18 holes: 21 cigs, 12 Diet Cokes, 6 packs of Peanut M&M’s, and 0 ounces of water,” reported Brinson. Drawing on that, Dan Rapaport went ahead to highlight how “2 Cokes is rookie numbers.” At the same time, another follower also responded; “I’m pretty sure he’s a 3 diet cokes a side drinker so these are light numbers….I also just heard he lit up a cigarette post champions dinner at the table and was ashing it on his used plate. Legend.” Although the Champions Dinner episode is but a rumor, it shows the carefree attitude that he sports on and off the greens. Another follower, consequently, couldn’t help but praise the golfer; “He’s a different breed of GOAT.”

John Daly had once revealed the kind of foods he liked to eat and drink as part of his routine. But there’s a catch. He never drinks water. In an interview with Graham Bensinger, the senior pro once said, “Rich Beam calls me ‘camel’ cos I never drink water. I drink Diet Coke. I like to have ice, which to me is water. So I get plenty of water in my Diet Coke.” He also made sure to express his dislike for drinking water when he added, “I don’t drink water. I hate water. I cannot stand to drink water. I used to drink 12-20 diet cokes a day, I’d go to McDonald’s three or four times a day. To me, they always had the best fountain drink.” Comparing the number of cokes he drank back then and now, one follower came forward to comment, “Nice to see he’s cutting back on the diet cokes.” At the same time, another couple of fans went ahead to respond how the professional drinking so many cokes was normal: “That’s pretty standard. But it used to be Diet Coke” and “Normally he’s a Diet Coke drinker. So now he really may have given up.”

One thing is for sure. John Daly is enjoying himself out on the greens at the Valhalla Golf Course even though he might not make the cut for the moving day. What do you think of his actions? Let us know in the comments below!