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John Daly’s PGA Championship win in 1991 was a day of tragedy for one family, so he decided to give back.
Daly, 55, was a rookie not expected to win the championship. But with $30,000 of his $230,000 total prize money, he set up a college fund for Emily and Karen.
John Daly 1991 PGA Tour.Getty
“For him to win this iconic tournament and to be so selfless and share his winnings with us, it does shed a light on his true character and what he values most,” Karen, who is now a doctor, recalled in an interview with ESPN.
Emily, now a mom of four who graduated with a degree in respiratory therapy, added: “I didn’t understand the magnitude of John’s sacrifice at the time. I just assumed it was some guy who had gotten a big paycheck and was generous enough to give some of it to us. We were very young, and it was his first win and he had obligations and debts, and that whole part of it I didn’t know.”
Daly opened up about his decision, telling ESPN, “I just felt like I had to do something, almost a responsibility, since I felt [Tom Weaver] was out on the course because of us players and I thought in my heart it was the Godsend thing to do.”
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“I’m so proud of those girls and happy to help take care of them and for what they’ve accomplished.”
In a 2005 interview with ESPN Emilyadmitted, “Whenever I think of golf, it’s bittersweet. My Dad was just starting to take me to lessons when he died. Now my husband, Curtis, plays. All I tell him is if it looks like rain, go inside.”
source: people.com
