John Daly is Using a Golf Cart at the 2019 PGA Championship and People are Losing Their Minds

John Daly has been given the green light to drive a golf cart at the PGA Championship next week at Bethpage Black, and people are losing their minds about this decision.  The PGA of America granted the 53-year old Daly and two-time major champion a special exemption because of arthritis he suffers in his right knee under their own Americans with Disabilities Act policy. 

 

Critics like Nick Faldo are saying walking is an integral part of the game.  Some are predicting doom and gloom because of the precedent it sets.  And still others are reminding us all that some guy named Tiger played and won a U.S. Open on a broken leg.  But this decision really isn't that big of a deal. 

It's true that Daly was denied permission to ride in a cart at last year's U.S. Senior Open, and this is from the Champions Tour where riding a cart is usually allowed.  Daly also withdrew from last year's Open Championship claiming his arthritis was "unbearable," and he was also turned down permission to use a golf cart. 

 

However, the PGA of America however is free to make whatever rules they deem proper for the PGA Championship.  The PGA of America runs the tournament and makes all the rules.  They decide where they want the tournament to take place, the qualifications to play in it, and even the format (it used to be a match play format until 1958).  The PGA Tour and USGA just don't have any legal standing or right to dictate otherwise. 

Some of the outrage also stems from the fact that Daly's career script might be best described as "what could have been."  His battles with booze, women, gambling, calories, and just about every demon imaginable are notorious, and even Daly admits he "wasted his talent," and "played in tournaments drunk."  Some argue Daly doesn't really have a disability as much as his body has just broken down from decades of abuse. 

 

Again however, the PGA of America is free to decide what their Americans with Disabilities policy entails.  And after their medical team investigated and reviewed Daly's request, it was determined his condition qualifies him to ride a cart (though it was not revealed what his specific condition is). 

Daly will be the first player to use a cart in a major championship since 2012, when Casey Martin rode in one in the U.S. Open at The Olympic Club.  Martin suffered from a lifelong and painful blood circulation disorder, and was initially denied a request to use a cart by the PGA Tour.  

 

Then Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem said, "our tour should have the right to make its own rules and regulations," and that "walking was an integral part of the game."  Martin took the decision all the way to the Supreme Court however, and the Justices ruled in Martin's favor (7-2). 

The same arguments that were made 17 years ago are being made again today with Daly.  It's not fair to the rest of the field.  It will open the floodgates to more players requesting and being granted the use of carts in major championships, where the venues are often as brutal to walk as they are to hit shots.  But guess what?  That didn't happen.  The sky didn't fall.  And it won't happen this time either. 

 

Honestly, the worst thing that can come from this decision is Daly sneaks a drink (or ten) into the cart, does something boneheaded, and crashes it.  That clearly wouldn't be a good thing for "Wild Thing."  But then again, it's probably what a lot of people are secretly hoping happens.