Jarrod Lyle (21 August 1981 – 8 August 2018) was an Australian professional golfer. He won twice on the 2008 Nationwide Tour. He played a number of seasons on the PGA Tour; his best finish being tied for 4th place in the 2012 Northern Trust Open. Soon after this performance, Lyle was diagnosed with a recurrence of leukemia, with which he was diagnosed as a teenager. Subsequent treatment limited his playing time and in July 2018, Lyle decided to stop treatment. Lyle died on 8 August 2018 at the age of 36.[1][2][3]

Jarrod Lyle
Personal information
Born(1981-08-21)21 August 1981
Shepparton, Victoria, Australia
Died8 August 2018(2018-08-08) (aged 36)
Torquay, Victoria, Australia
Height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight235 lb (107 kg; 16.8 st)
Sporting nationality Australia
Spouse
Briony Harper
(m. 2011)
Children2
Career
Turned professional2004
Former tour(s)PGA Tour
PGA Tour of Australasia
Nationwide Tour
Professional wins2
Number of wins by tour
Korn Ferry Tour2
Best results in major championships
Masters TournamentDNP
PGA ChampionshipDNP
U.S. OpenT48: 2008
The Open ChampionshipCUT: 2006
Achievements and awards
PGA Tour
Courage Award
2014–15

Early life

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Lyle was born in Shepparton, Victoria, Australia.[4] He got his start in golf at age six when he caddied for his father.[4]

At the age of 17, Lyle was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia and was confined to his bed for nine months while undergoing chemotherapy treatments at the Royal Children's Hospital.[5] It took another 12 months before he had the energy to walk a golf course again. He began a friendship during that time with PGA Tour member and fellow Australian Robert Allenby.[5] He was diagnosed with a recurrence of the disease in March 2012.[6]

Professional career

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Lyle turned professional in 2004.[7] He played a number of tournaments on the 2005 Asian Tour and was runner-up twice, in the Macau Open and the Brunei Open.[8] He was runner-up in the 2006 ING New Zealand PGA Championship, an early season event co-sanctioned by the Nationwide Tour. He played on the remainder of 2006 Nationwide Tour and finished 18th on the money list and earning his PGA Tour card for 2007.[9] He made only three top-25 finishes on the PGA Tour in 2007 and finished 164th on the money list and lost his Tour card.[9] Back on the Nationwide Tour in 2008, he won twice, at the Mexican Open and the Knoxville Open,[10] and was runner-up in the Xerox Classic.[4] He finished 4th on the money list and earned his 2009 PGA Tour card.[9]

2009 was another disappointing season on the PGA Tour, his only top-10 finish being in the Mayakoba Golf Classic at Riviera Maya-Cancun, an alternate event on the tour.[11][12] In 2010 Lyle played tournaments on the PGA Tour and the Nationwide Tour but finished 5th in the 2010 Q-School to earn his full card on the PGA Tour for 2011. Lyle scored a hole-in-one at the Waste Management Phoenix Open in 2011 on the par-3 16th 'Stadium Hole' winning $25,000 for a charity of his choice.[4] This was the first hole-in-one on the 16th in the Phoenix Open for nine years.[13] He regained his card with another good performance in the Q-School and played on the PGA Tour again 2012.[4] He had his best finish in a PGA Tour event in February 2012 when he tied for 4th place in the Northern Trust Open.[4] The following week, in the Mayakoba Golf Classic he was infected by an insect bite.[4] Subsequent tests resulted in the diagnosis of the recurrence of leukemia.[14]

After his second remission, Lyle made his return to competition at the Talisker Masters in late 2013 and made the cut.[15] In 2014, he played his first PGA Tour-sanctioned round in 29 months at the Web.com Tour's Midwest Classic and finished T11.[16] Once Lyle made his allotted rehab Web.com Tour starts, he was able to return to the PGA Tour where he had 20 starts and had to earn $283,825 to match Kevin Chappell, the golfer who finished 125th on the 2012 PGA Tour money list.[17] Lyle made his first PGA Tour start since 2012 after Monday qualifying for the Frys.com Open in October 2014,[18] where he made the cut and finished T31.[19] Lyle was unable to meet the terms of his medical exemption and his leukemia returned in July 2017.[20]

Death

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In July 2017, Lyle began treatment for another recurrence of the leukemia,[21] but a year later decided to end treatment and begin palliative care.[22] He died on 8 August 2018, at age 36.[23][24]

In 2021, the PGA Tour of Australasia added the TPS Murray River to their schedule as part of The Players Series. The tournament was played at Cobram Barooga Golf Club, near his home town, being named in memorial of Lyle.[25]

Personal life

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Lyle married his long-time partner Briony Harper in December 2011. They had two daughters.[4]

Amateur wins

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Professional wins (2)

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Nationwide Tour wins (2)

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No. Date Tournament Winning score Margin of
victory
Runner-up
1 3 Feb 2008 Mexico Open −17 (68-69-67-63=267) 4 strokes   Matt Every
2 22 Jun 2008 Knoxville Open −19 (68-66-69-66=269) Playoff   Chris Kirk

Nationwide Tour playoff record (1–0)

No. Year Tournament Opponent Result
1 2008 Knoxville Open   Chris Kirk Won with birdie on first extra hole

Results in major championships

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Tournament 2006 2007 2008
U.S. Open T48
The Open Championship CUT
  Did not play

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied
Note: Lyle never played in the Masters Tournament or the PGA Championship.

Team appearances

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Amateur

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "'My time was short': Australian golfer Jarrod Lyle dies aged 36". ABC News. 9 August 2018. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  2. ^ "Australian golfer Jarrod Lyle dies of cancer aged 36". Evening Standard. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  3. ^ "Australian golfer Jarrod Lyle dies aged 36". BBC News. 9 August 2018. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h "Jarrod Lyle timeline". Golf Channel. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  5. ^ a b "Jarrod Lyle passes away at 36". Golf Channel. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  6. ^ "Australian Lyle has recurrence of leukemia". PGA Tour. Associated Press. 9 March 2012. Archived from the original on 14 April 2012.
  7. ^ a b c Livsey, Laury (8 August 2018). "Jarrod Lyle passes away at age 36". PGA Tour. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  8. ^ "Jarrod Lyle: Putting up a good fight". Asian Tour. 1 August 2018. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  9. ^ a b c "Aussie pro Jarrod Lyle remembered for much more than golf". Newshub. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  10. ^ "Lyle Prevails in Playoff at Knoxville Open". Golf Channel. Sports Network. 22 June 2008. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  11. ^ "Jarrod Lyle PGA Tour Profile". PGA Tour. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  12. ^ "Mayakoba Golf Classic: Past Results". PGA Tour. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  13. ^ Auclair, T.J. (31 January 2018). "Holes in one on No. 16 at TPC Scottsdale in the Waste Management Phoenix Open". The PGA of America. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  14. ^ O'Hare, Bryan (9 March 2012). "Jarrod Lyle faces new cancer battle". Australian Senior Golfer. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  15. ^ "Talisker Masters: Lyle's mission accomplished". Golf Australia. 17 November 2013. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  16. ^ "Sucher wins Midwest Classic; Lyle ties for 11th". The Sports Network. 27 July 2014. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  17. ^ Wacker, Brian (14 September 2016). "Leukemia survivor Jarrod Lyle, out of playing options, ponders life after golf". Golf Digest. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  18. ^ "Jarrod Lyle Monday Qualifies for Frys.com Open After Two-Year Cancer Battle". Golf Magazine. 7 October 2014. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  19. ^ "Frys.com Open 2014 Leaderboard". Golf Channel. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  20. ^ Lutton, Phil (26 July 2017). "Golf world rallies around Jarrod Lyle as he faces blood cancer for third time". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  21. ^ Priest, Evin (26 July 2017). "Aussie golfer Jarrod Lyle admitted to hospital, diagnosed with cancer". ESPN.
  22. ^ "Jarrod Lyle: Australian golfer ends cancer treatment to begin palliative care". BBC Sport. 31 July 2018.
  23. ^ "Jarrod Lyle dies after long battle with cancer". The Sydney Morning Herald. 9 August 2018.
  24. ^ "Aussie golfer's final message". NewsComAu. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  25. ^ Emanuel, Jimmy (15 February 2022). "The preview: The Players Series – Murray River". Golf Australia. Retrieved 15 February 2022.
  26. ^ Blake, Martin (27 January 2018). "I don't know how you're still going: Jarrod Lyle amazes doctors as cancer fight continues". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
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