John Daly used to be the horse. Now, by his own very real admission, he’s the saddle, and his son, John Daly II, is pulling them both forward.

“My career’s kind of declining, and his is just starting,” Daly told Hard Rock Bet on December 23. “I’m usually the saddle, he’s the horse. Now he’s both this year because I haven’t really been playing a lot,” he explained. “My body just doesn’t let me practice the way I want to anymore with the arthritis and all the surgeries and stuff.”

The admission arrived days after the father-son duo finished tied for second at the PNC Championship, posting 26-under par at Orlando’s Ritz-Carlton Golf Club. Team Kuchar claimed the title with a record-setting 33-under. But for Daly, the result mattered less than the revelation it exposed: the torch had passed, and that passing carries weight.

Daly built his career on defying expectations—the ninth alternate who showed up at Crooked Stick in 1991 without a practice round and walked away with the PGA Championship. Four years later, he stood on the 18th green at St. Andrews and hoisted the Claret Jug after a playoff victory over Costantino Rocca. Grip it and rip it wasn’t just a slogan; it was Daly’s philosophy. Now, that same body has absorbed decades of hardships.

Imago

Sixteen surgeries in the last four years alone, including an emergency hand procedure in January 2025 for complications from chronic osteoarthritis. Both knees have been replaced. There is also ongoing back pain. Bladder cancer was diagnosed in 2020, requiring multiple procedures with a high risk of recurrence. Each surgery chipped away at the body that once launched drives past 300 yards with reckless abandon.

“I’m like Lazarus—I keep coming back from the dead,” Daly said earlier in 2025. “Waking up is a win for me.”

His 2025 Champions Tour numbers echoed the physical toll. Daly finished the season ranked 133rd on the money list, earning $48,705 across 15 events with zero top-10 finishes. At the Insperity Invitational, the same tournament he won in 2017 for his lone Champions Tour victory, he finished dead last. His last PGA Tour win dates back to 2004.

Earlier in 2025, he skipped the PGA Championship to play the Regions Tradition instead. His reason was simple. He could go there and miss the cut and still get $6,000. Now, even as the playing career winds down, Daly’s competitive fire hasn’t extinguished. It has been redirected. He expressed interest in serving as a co-captain for the 2027 Ryder Cup at Adare Manor in Ireland, ideally alongside Tiger Woods. His Irish ancestry, roots tracing back to Cork, makes the venue personal.

“I’d love to be a captain one day, but that ain’t never going to happen,” he said with characteristic bluntness. “But Tiger would be an unbelievable captain. I would love to be a co-captain or just be a part of it somehow.”

His cultural footprint extends beyond the course as well. Daly filmed scenes for Happy Gilmore 2 alongside longtime friend Adam Sandler, and he was honored to be a part of that. What tempers the reality of decline is watching his son rise to meet the moment.

John Daly II emerges as the driving force behind Team Daly

Little John’s 2025 campaign rewrote the trajectory of his amateur career. The University of Arkansas senior captured the Southern Amateur Championship in July, winning by five shots. He added the Blessings Collegiate Invitational in October. At the U.S. Amateur, he reached the quarterfinals before falling to eventual champion Mason Howell. His PGA Tour University ranking now sits at No. 31—a top-25 finish guarantees Korn Ferry Tour membership.

“He had one hell of a summer—won a few tournaments and played great,” the elder Daly said. “He’s pretty much the stud.”

Daly once called their 2021 PNC Championship victory, beating Tiger and Charlie Woods by two strokes, the greatest win of his career. Not the majors. The one with his son.

“If I can help him with a few putts and a few shots, I don’t have to do a lot,” he said. “Hopefully we can just make a lot of putts, because that’s what it all comes down to.”

At 59, John Daly has made peace with what his body can no longer deliver. What it can still deliver, presence, guidance, and the weight of lived experience, may prove more valuable than any trophy. Little John is the horse now. And his father has never been prouder to ride along.