Australian professional golfer Jarrod Lyle died at the age of 36, after a long battle with cancer his, wife stated.
“It breaks my heart to tell everyone that Jarrod is no longer with us,” Briony Lyle, his wife, said in a statement on Aug. 8, according to USA Today. “He passed away peacefully at 8.20 p.m. last night having spent his final week among his family and close friends.”
“Jarrod was able to take in many of the unbelievably kind and generous acts and words in his final few days and was overwhelmed by the emotional outpouring,” she said, according to AFP.
“He asked that I provide a simple message: ‘Thanks for your support, it meant the world. My time was short, but if I’ve helped people think and act on behalf of those families who suffer through cancer, hopefully it wasn’t wasted.’”
Lyle had been battling leukemia for nearly two decades. He died in Australia.
Outpouring of Support
A number of professional golfers offered their condolences.
“Deeply saddened to hear about the passing of my friend Jarrod Lyle. Jarrod will forever be an inspiration to us alI. Ellie, Dash, Lucy, and I send condolences to Briony, Lusi and Jemma. Rest easy mate. We will miss you,” wrote golfer Jason Day on Twitter.
“Can’t send enough love and well wishes to the Lyle family at this time. Can only imagine what his family are going through. Inspirational man !!” wrote Tommy Fleetwood on Twitter.
Said Ernie Els, “We are very sad to hear of Jarrod Lyle’s passing. He fought a good fight and will be forever remembered for his courage, strength, perseverance and the light he brought to all of our lives. The world lost a good man. RIP Jarrod. - Ernie, Liezl, Samantha, and Ben.”
“Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Lyle family. You were and always will be a fighter and will be missed by so many people. Rest In Peace Jarrod,” said Patrick Reed, a Masters champion.
“Such a sad day, we will all miss you so much Jarrod,” tweeted 2013 U.S. Open champion Justin Rose. “Thinking of his family at this time.”
Lyle last week released a message, saying that he felt like “the luckiest golfer going around because so many people took an interest in me and took an interest in, I guess, my fight,” AFP reported. “It’s going to be hard to leave that behind, but they know that I love them,” he said. “They know that all the fighting that I did do was to get back out and play golf again.”
Lyle was diagnosed in 1999 and spent much of the next nine months in a hospital in Melbourne.
He gradually returned to golf and reduced his handicap to scratch before turning professional in 2004. He qualified for the Asian Tour in 2005 and started playing on the second tier of the U.S. tour in 2006.
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After another setback he made an emotional comeback from 20 months out of competitive golf during the 2013 Australian Masters before using a medical exemption to play on the U.S. PGA Tour in 2015.
Lyle underwent a bone marrow transplant last December but last week decided not to continue with treatment after saying he'd “reached his limit.”
Jack Phillips is a breaking news reporter with 15 years experience who started as a local New York City reporter. Having joined The Epoch Times' news team in 2009, Jack was born and raised near Modesto in California's Central Valley. Follow him on X: https://twitter.com/jackphillips5
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