Wonderful ambassadors for both golf and their country, Adam Scott and Jarrod Lyle have endeared themselves to the Australian public in vastly different ways.

Scott, the progeny of a PGA Professional, has served as something of an aspirational figure.

Blessed with a swing that draws gasps from golfers and a face that has attracted Hollywood starlets, Scott has been a consistent presence near the top of the world rankings for the past 20 years.

His status in Aussie golf was cemented when he became the first player from this country to claim the coveted Green Jacket in winning the 2013 Masters and he has been hailed for the way he has supported the PGA Tour of Australasia during his time as one of Australia’s leading professionals.

A two-time winner of the Australian PGA Championship and winner of the 2009 Australian Open at New South Wales Golf Club, Scott turned professional in 2000 and from 2001 until 2014 enjoyed a tournament victory at least once every year.

Winner of the Alfred Dunhill Championship in 2001 on the European Tour, Scott’s breakthrough in America came at the 2004 Players Championship where he made a spine-tingling up-and-down at the 72nd hole to win.

One of only three Australian males to rise to No.1 in the world rankings, Scott has amassed 14 wins on the PGA TOUR including two World Golf Championships events, his most recent win coming at the Genesis Invitational in February.

Lyle emerged in emotional fashion at the 2005 Heineken Classic, his story of fighting back from leukaemia to reach the pinnacle of world golf instantly endearing him to millions of golf fans throughout the world.

Lyle was the professional that Aussie golfers could relate to. Burly by nature but possessing a surgeon’s touch around the greens, Lyle wore his heart on his sleeve and golf fans responded by holding a special place for Lyle in theirs.

Although he missed joining Craig Parry and Nick O’Hern in the playoff at Royal Melbourne in 2005, Lyle was the story of that Heineken Classic, his two wins on the Nationwide Tour in 2008 propelling him to the PGA TOUR in 2009.

Lyle spent three years on the PGA TOUR full-time but shortly after finishing fourth at the 2012 Northern Trust Open he was diagnosed with a recurrence of the acute myeloid leukaemia that he had fought off as a teen.

Tears were shed both inside the ropes and out when he returned again to play in the 2013 Australian Masters but when the cancer returned for a third time in July 2017 the mountain he would be asked to climb was simply too steep, Lyle passing away in August 2018 at just 36 years of age.

Adam Scott
Career wins: 31
Major wins: 1 (2013 Masters)
Australasian Tour wins: 6
Australian PGA: Won (2013, 2019)
Australian Open: Won (2009)

Jarrod Lyle
Career wins: 2
Major wins: Nil
Best finish on Australasian Tour: T3 (2005 Heineken Classic)
Australian PGA: T16 (2006 and 2008)
Australian Open: T7 (2009)