INTERVIEW | JARROD LYLE
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Journey James Henderson talks to two-time cancer survivor Jarrod Lyle, who made a tearful return to the professional golfing arena at November’s Australian Masters. “It was the toughest part of my life,” recalls Jarrod Lyle, with a lump in his throat. “It was the worst situation to be in, being at the birth but knowing you are about to disappear and start a fight for your own life.” Lyle’s daughter Lusi arrived into the world at 11:37pm on 10 March, 2013, but oblivious to the newborn, her seriously ill father was scheduled to start intensive chemotherapy treatment just 12 hours later. “Lusi doesn't know it yet but she saved my life,” says Lyle, who was diagnosed with a recurrence of acute myeloid leukemia just weeks before the birth. “When she looks back and sees her daddy with no hair looking sick and frail I'm going to explain to her how much she helped my recovery. “She didn't do anything but be there and it saved me.” A highly likeable, fun-loving figure on tour, Lyle has emerged from his darkest days full of life and brimming with perspective. Making his long-awaited return in the Australian Masters at Royal Melbourne in November, where he finished 57th on eight-over-par, the Victorian can now look back fondly on what was the hardest moments of his life. After his wife Briony, induced so that he could cherish his baby daughter before starting treatment, gave birth just before midnight, Lyle took control – cutting the umbilical chord, giving Lusi her first bath and dressing her for the first time. “I did a great job of dressing her,” he laughs. “I put her in a green jumpsuit with red striped socks, she looked like a Christmas decoration but I didn't care. “We put her to sleep and I just laid there in bed watching her, I didn't take my eyes off her for the whole 12 hours.” The following morning family and friends arrived to toast the birth, but as expected, nobody got near little Lusi.
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Lyle failed to play much golf during his recovery; in fact, after taking his putter into hospital, he jokes the doctors ended up making use of his clubs more than him.
Jarrod Lyle with his daughter Lusi at the Australian Masters (above); the former Asian Tour player (right) made the cut at Royal Melbourne, finishing in a highly credible 57th place
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Lyle-old poses with the Knoxvile Open trophy after winning the event in 2008 (above); in one of the understatements of the season, the 32-year-old says that not giving up is one of his biggest strengths 58
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I just held onto her and didn't want to let her go,” says Lyle, who was first diagnosed with leukemia as a 17-year-old. “I was sat thinking this could be the last time I'm ever going to see my daughter. People didn't even ask to hold her. I had devil eyes so they didn't dare come any closer.” But from listening to the somewhat liberating cries of newborns in maternity wards, Lyle succumbed to the shuddering screams of grown men in treatment rooms the following day. It would be four weeks before Lyle would be reunited with his wife and daughter, and knowing such a thing helped see him through the tougher times of his recovery. Having little Lusi, as he affectionately calls her, at home certainly gave the PGA Tour star something to fight for, spurred on by a constant stream of pictures and updates. Six months on and unsurprisingly he is “absolutely loving being a dad.” “I know I'm not the only father in the world but this is one of the best things ever,” says Lyle, who ironically has greater memories of his daughter than if he’d been competing on Tour. “Bizarrely during my recovery I've actually experienced so many great moments with her, moments I wouldn't have shared if I was still playing on tour. “I've seen her take her first steps, say her first words and grow her first teeth and I love every minute of it – it makes me feel alive.
Despite being “exhausted” following his Australian Masters exploits, a rejuvenated and refreshed Lyle has now returned to business, with the tournament a way of gauging his progress. Lyle failed to play much golf during his recovery; in fact, after taking his putter into hospital, he jokes the doctors ended up making use of his clubs more than him. But always in search of a silver lining, Lyle treats his recovery as a boost to the mental side of his game, not a hindrance. No longer does a bad shot irk away at him. Golf simply isn’t everything anymore, which ironically has worked wonders for his state of mind. “If I play a bad round of golf there's always tomorrow, but most guys can't quite get to that mental place,” accepts Lyle. Being a professional golfer and a competitive person naturally ensures Lyle desperately wants to do well, but when faced with it, it’s not his life. “As long as I've got my wife and my daughter my world is complete,” he says, citing golf as simply an added bonus. “It's the only thing I'm good at so I do want to hang around for a little bit longer. “But I can walk away from the game and be proud at what I have achieved.” Having competed on the PGA Tour, played in two majors and won a couple of tournaments, the 32-year-old acknowledges the critics may not HKGOLFER.COM
think his is a stellar career, but he’s “bloody happy with it.” And while he is eagerly awaiting the day he can return to the PGA Tour, one day he is keen to forget is 13 May, 1999; a "day that is etched in my memory forever” he says. But in typical Lyle style, he refuses to acknowledge the anniversary of his first diagnosis in any way, looking ahead not behind. “My transplant was on 8 June and for me that's my new birthday which I celebrate,” says Lyle, who turned 32 in August. “It's the start of my second life and I'd rather celebrate that than my actual birthday.” After turning professional in 2004, Lyle earned his PGA Tour card, lost it and earned in again the space of three seasons; resilience is clearly his strong point. “Not giving up is one of my biggest strengths,” he says. “If I'd have given up in ‘99 I wouldn't be playing golf, in fact I probably wouldn't even be walking. After being diagnosed aged 17 Lyle was confined to his bed for nine months, starting mortality square in the face, fighting a battle no teenager should face. Clichéd it may be, Lyle maintains the minute you start to think negatively and get down because you're feeling sick is the moment when it has defeated you. “You never want something like that to defeat HKGOLFER.COM
Lyle is not a patient nor is he a statistic. He is a survivor, a husband and a father. And such a buoyant character is not about to let the cancer which has plagued parts of his life ruin his overriding passion: living. you,” insists Lyle, who breaks the conversation to put Lusi to bed. “You've got to fight as hard as you can and that is what helped me come out of the other side. “The second time around I've had something to fight for and I desperately wanted to get well to watch my daughter get well. “I fought my ass off to get better for Briony and Lusi.” While Lyle now lives off the mantra of looking ahead and not behind, when it comes to an official return to the tour, it’s a case of taking things day by day. Receiving five “warm-up” event invitations to play anywhere in the world as part of his medical exception, the Australian Masters was Lyle’s first official tournament. In truth, Lyle is well ahead of schedule, and because of this he has yet to be cleared to fly or travel, so logistically speaking he can't commit to other tournaments. “I know I'm on one pill for the rest of my life but it's a huge improvement from when I was first in hospital, taking 14 pills at breakfast, 12 at lunch and a further 10 at dinner,” he says. “I’ve come along way in that respect.” “Getting cancer was and still is always in the back of my mind, it never leaves you. “The reality is that it could happen a third time, so for me right now it's about being as healthy as I can be and enjoying my life.” Lyle is not a patient nor is he a statistic. He is a survivor, a husband and a father. And such a buoyant character is not about to let the cancer which has plagued parts of his life ruin his overriding passion: living. HK GOLFER・JAN 2014
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