Famed golfer John Daly to compete at Barbasol Championship
One of the biggest personalities in golf will be participating in next week’s PGA Barbasol Championship at Keene Trace Golf Club in Nicholasville — provided he’s healthy enough to do so.
John Daly, known for his antics on and off the course just as much as his play, is among the golfers who will play in the four-day event, which begins July 18.
It’s perhaps a consolation for Daly, who was denied use of a golf cart for the British Open, which is held the same weekend as the Barbasol. Daly won the 1995 Open at St. Andrews; he now uses a cart because of an arthritic knee.
“While I trust the (golf club’s) decision was made with good intentions, I could not disagree more with their conclusions,” he wrote on Instagram.
The R&A announced Tuesday that Daly had withdrawn from the British Open “due to a medical condition.”
The nature of that condition — be it his arthritic knee or a spider bite — was not entirely clear.
The Barbasol Championship posted on Facebook on Monday night that the 53-year-old will now compete in its event. Daly will be allowed to use a cart in the Kentucky event.
Andy Pazder, the chief tournaments and competition officer for the PGA Tour, said Daly late last year was approved to use a cart through 2019 at PGA Tour events and PGA Tour Champions events that require walking.
Daly has been dealing with arthritis in his knee, and he says he also was diagnosed as diabetic. That led him to request a cart for the PGA Championship at Bethpage Black under the Americans with Disabilities Act, which the PGA of America approved after Daly submitted the required medical information.
The R&A, which runs the British Open, rejected his request for a cart over the weekend, saying it felt walking was an integral part of the tournament. “We must also ensure, as far as possible, the challenge is the same for all players in the field,” it said.
Pulling out of the British Open, however, might also be linked to a social media post from Daly on Sunday.
In a Twitter note that he described as “My life chapter 84k,” Daly says he was on vacation in England last week when he was bitten by a spider without realizing it. He was taken to an emergency room on Friday — apparently at Uniontown Hospital in Pennsylvania, north of the Nemacolin Resort —and taken straight into surgery to remove a major infection in his abdominal area. He says he also was treated for early sepsis from a brown recluse.
His post included hashtags that say he was in some serious pain, glad to be alive and the photos were too graphic.
Daly, who has not played a regular PGA Tour event since The Greenbrier last summer, also is contemplating the Barracuda Championship in Reno, Nevada, the week after the Barbasol.
Daly last won on the PGA Tour in 2004 and has won two majors — the 1995 British Open and the 1991 PGA Championship as a rookie on the tour.
He still has past champion status on the PGA Tour, allowing him into tournaments that have room in the field.
The entire field for the Barbasol has not been announced. Barbasol officials said last month Kentuckians Chip McDaniel, Cooper Musselman, Stephen Stallings Jr., Hunter Stewart and Josh Teater will be among the competitors.
Troy Merritt won the inaugural Barbasol Championship in Kentucky last year.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
PGA Barbasol Championship
Where: The Champions Course at Keene Trace Golf Club in Nicholasville
When: July 18-21
Purse: $3.5 million
Defending champion: Troy Merritt
Website: BarbasolChampionship.com (for information about tickets, volunteer opportunities, event schedule, July 17 pro-am and more)
TV: All four rounds on the Golf Channel
This story was originally published July 9, 2019 at 8:58 AM.