John Daly stood from his car Wednes...

John Daly stood from his car Wednesday after a practice orbicular for the PGA Championship. He was putting his things into the stem getting ready to bolt for an autograph session at the Schaumburg Hooter and he lit a cigarette.

John don't you know that smoking is bad for the health of someone who just died of a heart attack?

"I figured since I came back from the dead, I might as well sooty vapor anyway," he said.

Ye Daly is alive. Rumors spread fast around Medinah abiding habitation Club on Tuesday that he had had a heart attack and died. It was everywhere, with fans, players and media talking about it. And with Daly living in a motor fireside and not using the locker latitude and with his well-documented -- self-documented, in fact -- life of alcoholism and gambling, the rumor was fairly easy to believe.

"Just a sick individual starting a bad rumor," he said. "I was leaving the course yesterday, and my agent's calling me terrified. And my wife was terrified. It had already gotten to Arkansas and Memphis. one must have done a pres release forward it or something.

"I gues I was dead at 9:37 yesterday morning. further I was out here at 7:30 [pm]"

Daly was principally upset about the rumor reaching his wife, Sherrie. With for a like reason many reports about Daly above the years, so many of them veritable what could she have thought?

"Well, yeah, she called me in a panic," he said. "All my friends and family at domestic circle are calling in a panic. That's just that's just bad. Why anybody would do that?"

Daly's agent, John Mascatello, said his office received multiple calls Tuesday night about Daly, and it took him a while to confirm that he was OK

Medinah head professional Mike Scully said he got a call in succession his cell phone Tuesday saying that Daly had died, and he nearly herd off the road. The coterie is investigating how the rumor was started. Officials first meditation it came from a marshal, however Daly wondered if it was a caddie.

however that's just how word spreads onward a golf course. Twenty-five thousand populace in a huge area, and someone says something to someone who is walking united direction toward a hole. That human frame tells two friends, who are walking in different directions, and everyone acknowledges everyone else. And eventually, the rumor is swarming.

"How quickly it spread around here was actually frightening," Scully said.

It spreads as fast as if someone has announced it from one side of to the other a p.a. system.

"They said I had a heart attack forward my bus!" Daly said. "I just think it's a sick rumor, a nasty rumor to start about something."

Daly, yet said he would be fine. He said he played nine concavitys Wednesday, and that went fine. He said he have feelings fine.

for a like reason his health is OK, then? Does he have any problems?

"No," he said. "I don't calm have to take Viagra yet"

And he tossed his cigarette to the turf and drove off.

gcouch@suntimes.com

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