To celebrate what would have been Jarrod Lyle’s 40^th birthday, Challenge and the PGA have asked Jarrod’s family, friends, colleagues, and the infinite people he influenced, to share their favourite stories of the affable Tour Professional.

It is hard to believe that it has been three years since the Big Fella from Shepparton left us to play the best golf courses in the universe.

I miss the big fella. Jarrod was a friend, an inspiration, and I’m not ashamed to say that I loved him.

Through my work as a press photographer at the Shepparton News I had photographed Jarrod many times as a junior and took a keen interest as he progressed. We were also both members of the Shepparton Golf Club.

It wasn’t until around 2003 that we started to become friends when I would stalk him on the Aussie tour.

It was some years after his first scare with leukemia that I covered his first Australian Open at Moonah Links in 2003.

There was something special about this kid from Shepp. He followed his dream after a cancer scare and was playing a major Aussie tournament and I felt honoured to be there watching, photographing (and stalking) Jarrod.

The rest of the golf world knew there was something special about Jarrod was when he came third at the Heineken Classic in 2005. 

I still remember photographing the tears of raw emotion running down his face as he was interviewed live on TV after his last round.

The legend of the fighting Jarrod Lyle had started.

Jarrod qualified in Asia for the 2006 Open at Royal Liverpool. The stalking was going to cost a little more this time, but I wasn’t going to miss it. I loved watching Jarrod play golf.

The best golfers in the world were there but if Jarrod was on the course, no one else mattered.  

It was the first round of The Open with Jarrod on the practice putting green in front of the historic club house with other pros including Vijay Singh around. 

Jarrod must have been feeling nervous as he passed a long and loud gust of wind. Vijay cracked up laughing as did the other pros. Jarrod had a bit of the Aussie larrikin in him and didn’t really care what others thought.

Most missed it but I saw the sigh of relief on his face through my camera when his first shot in a major finished on the fairway. He went on to miss the cut after he hit a ball over an internal out of bounds line on the 36th hole.

During the Open there was a lot of media attention after his illness. 

Jarrod made headlines around the world just by making the field. It was an inspiration to watch him deal with it all. There was no bullshit and no excuses.

At around the time of The Open we started the “Lylefile” online, a website  about Jarrod.

There was a section that invited messages to be send to Jarrod. There were thousands of messages of support and it was clear that Jarrod had inspired many people around the world with his fight with leukemia.

There were tears reading the messages of support from people who Jarrod’s story had touched around the world. His story gave people hope.

One of my greatest memories of Jarrod was during the Coolum Classic years. A group from Shepp went up to watch him for up to five years straight, starting around 2007.

Our hearts rode every shot he played. If he played in the morning, we would watch and then play our Coolum Cup in the arvo at another course. 

The Wednesday night before the tournament he would play a few holes with us at MT Coolum. He was one of the boys playing with us on the eve of a big tournament. 

Jarrod also made time to come and watch us on the Friday of our event. We loved watching him and we loved him watching us, even though he was a slightly better golfer.

Even though he laughed I think he really did like watching our antics. He made time for us as he did for many people around the world.

The Coolum golfing highlight was Jarrod shooting 63, a 9-under par course record in the second round in 2008. 

The boys may have had a headache the next morning and a mysterious Lyle 63 sign appeared 12 storeys up over Coolum beach.

The Coolum boys will never forget the courage Jarrod showed on and off the course in his short life.

It was with great pride and pleasure that I accepted the invitation to take Jarrod and Briony’s wedding pictures in 2011. I guess he realised that I was going to turn up and stalk the wedding even if I wasn’t invited!

There were more tears in 2012 when the “c” word reappeared. We were organising a belated buck’s night when the news game through. It just wasn’t fair.

The Big Fella fought hard again with the inspiration of a beautiful daughter and beat the odds to make another comeback at the 2013 Masters.

There was huge media attention from all over the world. The crowd was in yellow for support and on the first tee there wasn’t a dry eye as he teed off the first. 

I was thankful for auto focus cameras as the tears ran down my cheeks. Jarrod would have been happy if he missed the cut but again the fighting spirit pushed him to the end.

He was exhausted in the fourth round but made it through.

Myself and a mutual friend of ours, Graham, joined me to the USA to watch Jarrod make his comeback on the USPGA tour after 29 months on a medical exemption recovering from leukemia.

He had an invite for Vegas the week after the first event for the year in the Nappa Valley but had to go to Monday qualifying to get into the field.

We flew into San Francisco knowing realistically that we may only watch Jarrod play two rounds of golf.

Jarrod new that friends Ian and Thelma were making the trip but had no idea that Graham and I were going to be there. 

It was late on our day of arrival when we heard that Jarrod had shot 66 to take one of the last spots at qualifying and was in the field for the first USPGA event of the year.

We headed to Nappa and hid in the bedroom of his motor home until he arrived back from practice on the Tuesday.

I will never forget the look on his face and the many swear words when he saw us there.

At dawn on Thursday after 29 months with medical exemption, Jarrod teed off the first with the same relief that I had seen so many times before through the camera, again with tears in the eyes of family and friends. 

Jarrod made the cut and of all the pictures I have taken of Jarrod, the ones with his friends and the other with his daughter Lusi after making the cut on comeback are some of the most memorable.

The last round of golf I watched Jarrod play was in Las Vegas the week after Nappa. 

He fought hard again to make the cut giving us eight rounds of golf to watch in two weeks rather than the two rounds we were guaranteed when heading to the USA for the comeback tour.

He continued to inspire thousands around the world.

We were all devastated when the cancer returned in 2017. It wasn’t fair again for someone who had given so much.

I feel honoured to have spent time in hospital in his last fight. There were times when not a word was said for hours and others where we shared memories and laughter of our times together.

Jarrod was loved around the world by his peers and the public. He was a great man that cherished friendship and inspired others. 

There was no greater tribute when Tiger Woods and most other players wore the LEUK badge after hearing of Jarrod’s latest battle.

Jarrod was dedicated to his charity work with Challenge. He inspired and gave hope to kids like himself in earlier years.

Robert Allenby inspired Jarrod with his work with Challenge and look what happened. The boy from Shepp with Leukemia inspired the world.

I saw Jarrod six days before his passing. My last few words to Jarrod were “Meet me on the first tee mate.”

Not sure when yet but I know you will be waiting. I’m sure he was thinking even a hacker could shank a ball 250 m down the middle in heaven.

We left singing the Melbourne Football Club song.

Miss you, mate. Happy 40^th birthday.

RIP my friend.

To find out more about Jarrod’s ongoing legacy as part of Challenge – supporting kids with cancer, head to challenge.org.au/jarrods-gift/

Ray Sizer is a former photographer at the Shepparton News and friend of the Lyle family.