Leaner Daly hungry to resurrect career after PGA Tour ban

MEMPHIS (Reuters) - Back on the PGA Tour for this week's St. Jude Classic after serving a six-month suspension, a leaner and hungrier John Daly has set his sights on working much harder to salvage his career.
The big-hitting American has played on sponsor's exemptions since losing his past champion category after the 2007 season and he has not won on the U.S. circuit for five years.
"I've wasted a lot of years," Daly told reporters at the TPC Southwind on Wednesday. "I enjoyed doing it but I see these guys work and work and work, and that's what I need to do.
"Golf is my life. It's the only thing I've been able to do to provide for my family, for myself. I just want to be more serious about it. I want to prepare myself more.
"The good news is I can still salvage a great career. I think I'm giving myself a chance to be the best player that I can be, and to me that's all that matters."
The 43-year-old, a double major champion, has spent most of his adult life struggling with alcohol, anti-depressants, gambling, binge eating and divorces.
Dubbed the 'Wild Thing' early in his career, Daly was banned from his home circuit in November for bringing the PGA Tour into disrepute after he was accused of being found drunk outside a bar.
DALY DIET
Since then, he has worked hard on his game, played five events on the European Tour and lost 60 pounds (27 kg) in three months by way of a surgical implant and a strict diet.
"I weighed in last week at 219 and my goal is to get to 190," said the 1991 U.S. PGA champion and 1995 British Open winner, who had ballooned to nearly 280 pounds earlier this year.
"My swing got a little fast losing the weight, but that's okay because my biggest problem has always been my follow-through.
"I kind of lay back on it and I think a lot of it was the weight. Now I can get through the ball a lot better, which creates hopefully more consistent shots."
Asked if he felt his PGA Tour ban had been warranted, Daly replied: "All I can say is I'm so happy I prepared myself in a positive way during the suspension.
"I could have taken it to a negative extreme and blamed this and blamed that. But it was time to say: 'Hey, let's lose some weight. It was a chance to spend some more time with my children and go practice.
"I did everything in a positive way to be prepared to play on the European Tour and here," added Daly, who has not won on the PGA Tour since the 2004 Buick Invitational. "I think it was actually good for me."
(Writing by Mark Lamport-Stokes in Los Angeles; Editing by Clare Fallon)

Source: Reuters