As Rory McIlroy withdrew yesterday from this week's Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open and admitted his chances of playing at the Open Championship are remote due to an injury suffered playing football with friends, words of encouragement were offered by a veteran Ryder Cup team-mate.
Other leading figures in the sport registered shock, concern and disappointment at the nature and timing of the ankle injury suffered by the world number one but Thomas Bjorn drew upon his own experience in suggesting McIlroy could yet tee it up at the Old Course next week.
"It's obviously a big blow for this tournament that he isn't going to be here, but these things happen.
"Let's see where he is in a couple of days," said Bjorn as he arrived at Gullane, where this year's Scottish Open is taking place.
"I did exactly the same thing about four weeks before the 1997 Ryder Cup. I twisted my ankle playing tennis but I got back."
Bjorn's tone differed considerably from that of Scot Richie Ramsay, another European Tour regular who has suffered a similar injury and tweeted yesterday: "I had a full tear of ligaments in my ankle not long ago. It takes a lot longer than you think to heal. 3 months til I played after tearing ligaments and even then getting my foot to work the right way was tough."
By contrast the 44-year-old Dane suggested that in spite of the alarm McIlroy generated by posting, on social media, a picture of himself with his left leg in an orthopaedic boot as he announced his Scottish Open withdrawal, it was too soon to make assessments from afar.
"I remember how worried I was when I did it...but when you have good people around you - and he'll have really good people around him - that's the thing, they can make miracles happen," said Bjorn.
"I really want to see the way he is in two or three days' time before I make any assessment on what impact it is going to have.
"I wouldn't be surprised to see him on the range next Tuesday, or he could be out for a long time, but before you know exactly how it is there is no point guessing. We will have to wait for him to make a proper judgement on that."
As to questions being raised yesterday about the wisdom of playing football so close to the biggest event on the European and arguably world golf calendar, Bjorn also offered perspective.
"People were asking me the same thing they'll be asking Rory now, but you have got to live," he observed.
"He could have gone for a run trying to get fit and twisted his ankle and how many times has he gone for a kickabout with his mates and nothing has happened? So it's just a freak accident. You can't criticise him for that.
"Obviously with the time of year it puts a lot of emphasis on the question: 'why would you do that?' but you have got to live your life. You can't hold a 26-year-old back from having a bit of fun.
"Everybody loves different sports and different things and yeah, accidents happen. It's just a shame if he doesn't get back, it's not great for the game.
McIlroy's own message indicated that he remains hopeful of being able to defend his Open title.
"Total rupture of left ATFL (ankle ligament) and associated joint capsule damage in a soccer kickabout with friends on Saturday," he reported on Instagram.
"Continuing to assess extent of injury and treatment plan day by day. Rehab already started..... Working hard to get back as soon as I can."
The news was understandably greeted with dismay across the sport, Sergio Garcia, another of their Ryder Cup team-mates, seeming convinced that McIlroy will be absent next week, tweeting: "We will all miss you @TheOpen next week my friend."
Paul McGinley, Europe's team captain when they beat the USA at Gleneagles last autumn, was another who counselled caution, however, saying he would like to find out more, albeit he admitted it was "a blow for the game as a whole," while former Ryder Cup captain Sam Torrance admitted to a sense of "complete shock."
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