John Daly makes $780,000-plus a year from Masters – without even playing Augusta National course

Daly is making more money than some players competing in the tournament

JOHN Daly makes a massive payday every year at The Masters, but he hasn’t been there in almost 20 years.

Despite his absence from Augusta National, Daly is present in town every year just a mile away from the golf course.

John Daly taking a shot at the James Hardie Pro Football Hall of Fame Invitational.
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John Daly brough in mountains of cash during The Masters tournamentCredit: Getty

John Daly at a golf tournament.
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Daly reportedly made $780,000 during the 2024 MastersCredit: Getty
Daly camps out at the August Hooters just down the road from where Rory McIlroy won his green jacket on Sunday.

The 58-year-old isn’t as concerned with green jackets as he is green dollars though, and watched his golf brand’s merch fly off the shelves during the weekend.

Last year, Daly’s team told ESPN that he made $780,000 selling hats, autographed golf balls, cigars, and other items.

He sells hats for $40, balls for $10, and boxes of cigars for $250.

His team estimated before The Masters that he could surpass the $780,000 figure from last year.

“Eat some good food, smoke, sell some s–t,” Daly told ESPN.

Daly was always the bad boy of golf, introducing himself to the sport with a 1991 PGA Championship win.

He enjoyed smoking cigarettes, drinking beer, and sporting his iconic mullet on the golf course.

Daly’s demeanor is the exact opposite of what is promoted at Augusta National, but fans have always loved his unique personality.

“John Daly’s my hero,” an Augusta resident told ESPN.

“He’s the best, drunkest golfer there ever was.”

Daly has battled health issues in recent years, fighting bladder cancer in 2020 and undergoing 16 surgeries for various other issues.

Still he remains a legend in the golf community.

“I got more metal in me than the bionic man Lee Majors does,” he said.

“But I’m still living, man. I’m like Lazarus, I just keep coming back from the f–king dead.”

John Daly of the United States at a golf tournament.
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Daly camps out at a nearby Hooters during every Masters tournamentCredit: Getty
While Daly is long out of competition in the PGA, fans might get a glimpse of him once again in the form of his son, John Daly II.

Now 21 years old, the junior Daly is following his father’s golf dream by joining the Arkansas golf team.

He also followed his father’s love of Hooters by signing an NIL deal with the restaurant.

The elder Daly knows he will never be the type of golfer who is a regular at Augusta, but he loves spending his time with the working man at his favorite restaurant.

“I may never get in the Hall of Fame, but you know what? It seems like I’ll always have the fans,” Daly said.

“I love them, and they know that. We just connect. Blue-collar people are supposed to connect.”