“The game’s feeling good. My putter has been the key to my play this week honestly,” Daly said after defeating Daniel Bennett, 3 and 2, in the Round of 16. “I’ve been putting really good. I’m reading them well and excited to see putts fall in.”
Of course, along with the blessing of having an accomplished parent is the burden of constant comparison. It’s fitting, then, that Daly is enjoying a breakout season by embracing dad’s free-swinging spirit while also recognizing that in order to become a great golfer, he needs to forge his own identity in the sport.
“He’s got two majors; I don’t,” Daly said earlier in the week when asked to compare his game to his dad’s. “I’m just trying to be the best version of myself.”
And he is. After rounds of 74-67 in stroke play, Daly safely advanced to match play in a championship that his dad never competed in. In his first-round victory over close friend Cooper Claycomb, Daly didn’t lose a hole. Daly drained a 30-footer for birdie on the 17th hole to finish off his Round of 32 opponent, reinstated amateur Nate Smith. Daly went 4 up through nine holes in his Round of 16 match and won 3 and 2.
The strong play in San Francisco is the latest in a series of top finishes for Daly. This past season for the Razorbacks, Daly led the team in scoring average (72.21) and earned his first collegiate victory. A few months later, competing against one of the strongest fields in amateur golf at the Northeast Amateur, Daly came in third, bested only by this week’s medalist and World No. 4-ranked amateur Preston Stout and 16-year-old phenom Miles Russell, who is also in the quarterfinals at The Olympic Club.
But it was Daly’s five-stroke victory at the Southern Amateur in July, played at Arkansas’ home course Blessings Golf Club, that confirmed his breakout was no fluke.
“The Southern was huge,” said Daly, who entered the week ranked 21st in WAGR and will surely move up with his performance this week. “It was awesome to play in front of my hometown friends, coaches, and just play our home course. That definitely boosted my confidence.”
Through his first few seasons as a Razorback, Daly was a good player who regularly posted top-25 finishes but rarely contended. The recent improvement, he says, is a combination of tightening up his ball-striking and learning how to better handle pressure.
“I feel like when I first started [the season], I was really close,” said Daly. “A couple of bad shots here and there but just trying to get more consistent off the tee. I’ve worked a lot on my wedges and just keeping it in play off the tee.”
Some advice from his dad about how to deal with intense on-course situations has also been important, especially during weeks like at the U.S. Amateur. “Just have fun,” said Daly about what his dad taught him about handling pressure. “If you let yourself have fun, the nerves just kind of disappear and go away.”
Daly’s breakthrough is the latest from a group of kids of top professionals who are beginning to make names for themselves. Charlie Woods, son of 15-time major champion Tiger, bested a stellar junior field earlier this year at the AJGA’s Team TaylorMade Invitational before qualifying for the U.S. Junior Amateur for the second year in a row. Earlier this spring, European Ryder Cup hero Ian Poulter’s son, Luke, won his first college event in his second season as a Florida Gator. Poulter also advanced to match play this week in San Francisco, before losing in the Round of 64.
Daly will play 17-year-old Georgia commit Mason Howell in the quarterfinals on Friday, with each just two wins away from an expected invitation to the Masters.
