Daly Takes A Stroll In Middle Of Round

John Daly veered to his left onto the cart path Friday while the rest of the threesome headed to the 10th tee at the U.S. Open. With that, the career of one of golf’s most troubled players took another turn for the worse.

Daly, in his third tournament since his return from alcohol rehabilitation, walked off the course after playing nine holes in the second round of the Open.

He didn’t tell Payne Stewart or Ernie Els, his playing partners. He didn’t even tell his caddie, who was waiting on the 10th tee box as Daly cleared out his locker and hopped into his car.

“His caddie was on the 10th tee in a state of panic,” said Stuart Reid, the USGA rules official walking with the group.

Daly was 10 over par after 27 holes and was almost certainly going to miss the cut. He later issued a statement through his sponsor, the Calloway Golf Company, citing physical and mental fatigue for his early exit.

“Even though I thought I was going to be strong enough to come right back and play three straight weeks on the tour, I found out I was wrong,” he said. “I just started feeling real weak after a few holes today, and by the time I got to No. 9 I was physically exhausted.”

Daly, 31, plans to take time off during which he will begin an intensive fitness program and work with a nutrition specialist.

It was the second time this year Daly withdrew in the middle of a tournament - in March, an alcohol-related blowup at the Players Championship resulted in a two-month sabbatical from the tour during which he received treatment at the Betty Ford Center.

Montgomerie loses cool

Colin Montgomerie lost it on the tee box and then lost it with the galleries - not a good combination at the U.S. Open.

The Scotsman, whose accuracy carried him to the first-round lead, hit only five fairways on Friday in shooting a 6-over-par 76 to fall four strokes behind Tom Lehman when play was suspended.

A model of confidence on Thursday, Montgomerie’s face was tense from the start of his second round, which began 2 hours and 40 minutes late because of a storm delay.

He snapped at a woman on the par-5 ninth when she cackled after he missed a 4-foot birdie putt.

“Save your cheers for the Ryder Cup, all right?” he said.

He asked for silence when there was little more than a whisper. When a fan yelled “You da man!” after Phil Mickelson teed off on the 16th hole, Montgomerie scowled.

“Hey! Hey! Hey! That’s enough,” he shouted, walking 30 feet off the tee box to find the man. He returned to the tee and drove into the rough.

On 14 driving holes Thursday, Montgomerie missed the fairway just once. He hit only five fairways Friday in a round that produced no birdies, six bogeys and three difficult parsaving putts.

“Obviously, I missed far too many fairways, and you can’t compete missing the fairways like I did today,” he said.

Clinton plans to watch Sunday

What does a golf-starved President Clinton want for Father’s Day?

To spend Sunday watching the nation’s best golfers at the U.S. Open at Congressional Country Club.

“It’s going to be my Father’s Day gift from Chelsea,” Clinton said.

Clinton has been unable to play golf since March 14 when he tripped at the Florida home of golfer Greg Norman and tore a knee tendon. Doctors say it will be several months before he can play again.

Woods back on track

Perhaps it is a sign of his talent that Tiger Woods could shoot 67 at the U.S. Open and feel a bit let down.

Bogeys on two of his last three holes Friday kept Woods out of red numbers after two rounds at Congressional Country Club. But some aggressive play early on turned the Tiger Woods plot from “Will he make the cut?” to “Can he get back into contention?”

Woods’ two-round total of 1-over left him four shots behind leader Lehman and showed he has the game to score in U.S. Open conditions.

“I’m 1 over par. Actually anyone who’s about 3 over par is in the ballgame,” Woods said.

How did Woods shave seven shots off his first-round score?

“I did exactly the same thing. The only difference is I hit more fairways and hit better iron shots,” he said.

The round came together on the front nine, where Woods played near flawless golf, missing no fairways and only one green.

He made birdie putts of 6, 8, 3 and 4 feet, lacing middle- and short-irons dead to the flag.

Golden rule

At age 57, Jack Nicklaus is still a presence. He shot 71 Friday and will make the cut with his two-round total of 144. In fact, he is only seven shots back. Nicklaus tied for 27th in last year’s Open.

Nicklaus’ son, Gary, shot 77 Friday and with a 150 total won’t be around for the weekend.

Gone also is Greg Norman, who followed a 75 with a disastrous 79. This means Norman has missed the cuts at the Masters and the Open, which should start talk over whether the Shark is losing it.