Into The Rough: Daly Sues Newspaper Over March Column

Daly Files Defamation Lawsuit Against Florida Times-Union

PGA Tour player John Daly has filed a lawsuit against the Florida Times-Union, Jacksonville.com, Morris Publishing Group and Florida Times-Union columnist Mike Freeman, claiming a column written by Freeman on March 25 during The Players’ Championship defamed him, according to Matt Galnor of the FLORIDA TIMES-UNION. In a column about how fans root for both Daly and David Duval, Freeman wrote Daly was “accused of smacking women around” and that he has “Thug Life qualifications” and “a rap sheet that would make [former Jaguars WR] R. Jay Soward look like a Backstreet Boy.” The newspaper ran a “Note to readers” in the Sports section on July 15 clarifying parts of the column, but the lawsuit said the note “did not constitute a full and fair correction, apology or retraction.” It also said that Daly “sustained substantial damages” from the column (FLORIDA TIMES-UNION, 7/30). Daly said that the column “‘destroyed’ his wife and prompted calls from associates.” Daly: “I had sponsors calling me saying, ‘When did you hit a woman?’ I could have lost deals over this thing” (N.Y. TIMES, 8/1).