You're feeding off one another and you can definitely feel the positive energy out there. But it was Leonard, the British Open champion, who was the tortoise outlasting the faster-starting hares. He hit only seven greens in regulation but, beginning with an intentionally bladed sand wedge that found the hole on No. 9, needed only 11 putts on the last 10 holes and shot a 68. Leonard used only 24 putts on the day, compared with 32 by Woods. Daly, who walked off the course after nine holes in the second round of the U.S. Open at Congressional in June without bothering to tell his playing partners or caddie, seemed determined to turn his life around this time.
Golf is an addiction.
So is alcohol. But Daly, who started drinking when he was 8 years old, ended up in alcohol rehabilitation in 1993 and was suspended the PGA Tour officially once and unofficially another time for rowdy behavior. He went on a bender the night after the first round on March 27 and ended up smashing his hotel room and frightening his wife, Paulette, before friends were called to subdue him. He was taken to a hospital with an erratic heart beat. I want to remember that night the rest of my life, how bad it really was.