Two-time major champion and golf legend John Daly has been a fixture of Masters week for years… despite never having won at Augusta National.
While the 59-year-old veteran doesn’t play the Masters anymore, for years he’s set up shop at Augusta’s Hooters restaurant with his RV to entertain fans, sign autographs and sell merch.
But the Hooters in Augusta, Ga., is no more. That left some wondering if Daly’s Masters tradition was over.
Thankfully for Daly fans heading to the Masters in April, local news outlet WRDW Channel 12 in Augusta has confirmed that Daly has found a new Augusta home.
In July of 2025, and amid a rash of closures of the chain’s restaurants nationwide, the Hooters on Washington Road in Augusta, Ga., closed for good. Months later, the building was demolished.
GOLF’s Michael Bamberger wrote all about Daly’s time at the Augusta hooters last summer, noting that Daly reportedly pulled in $780,000 in sales during the 2024 Masters.
The Hooters near Augusta National was the anti-Masters, yet had lore all of its own
So despite the fact that his best finish was a T3 at the 1993 Masters, Daly has an incentive to continue showing up as long as he can.
With Hooters now just a memory, we now know where Daly’s new Augusta headquarters will be.
According to a report from WRDW Channel 12, Daly will spend 2026 Masters week (or “golf week” as the Augusta locals call it) at the Top Dawg Tavern on Washington Road. The restaurant confirmed to WRDW they will host the major champ this year.
While it’s not quite as close to ANGC as Hooters was, Top Dawg Tavern is still just a mile from the entrance to Magnolia Lane off Washington Road, an easy walk as you can see below.
So if you’re attending the 2026 Masters, after you watch official honorary starters Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Tom Watson tee off the 1st hole, head over to Top Dawg Tavern to see Daly, the unofficial honorary Masters week greeter.
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