John Daly posted a tour-record 19 strokes on a single hole Friday at the PGA Tour Champions’ Sanford International, continuing his history of occasionally posting eye-popping numbers.
The two-time major champion’s adventure happened on Minnehaha Country Club’s par-5 12th hole, where he deposited seven balls into penalty areas. Daly found either the water hazard that cuts across the fairway in front of the green or the wooded area left of the putting surface multiple times before finally getting up and down from the intermediate rough to end the ordeal.
His score was initially recorded as a 17 before being corrected when he signed for an 18-over 88 – nine shots worse than anyone else in the 78-player field.
This appears to be Daly’s highest single-hole score in his competitive career, surpassing the 18 he carded on Bay Hill’s par-5 sixth during the 1998 Arnold Palmer Invitational. He’s had other notable blow-up holes, including hitting six balls into the water on the 11th hole during the first round of the 2011 Australian Open before withdrawing.
The previous PGA Tour Champions record for highest score on a single hole was 16, shared by three players. Bruce Crampton was the last to post that number at the 1996 Greater Grand Rapids Open.
What makes Daly’s adventures particularly fascinating is how they contrast with his incredible talent. The same player who can make these massive numbers has also won both a PGA Championship and Open Championship during his career.
