Pro golfer Chris Kirk is taking an indefinite leave from the PGA Tour in order to seek treatment for alcohol abuse and depression.
Kirk made the announcement on social media Tuesday.
“Tomorrow I will celebrate my 34th birthday but I have already begun a new and better chapter in my life. Thank you to my friends and family for being there for me,” he wrote in a caption beneath a slide announcing his decision.
Kirk did not provide any time table for his return and said his future focus after “multiple relapses” will be on being “the man my family deserves” while working on a “a new and better chapter in my life.”
Kirk has missed 11 of 17 cuts this season, including in his past four events. His best finish this year was a T-15 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. He’s ranked 188 in the latest OWGR and has earned $261,401 this season on tour. The most-recent of his four PGA Tour victories came at Colonial in 2015.
