The sportsworld woke up to the terrible news of the passing of the Miami Marlins' ace Jose Fernandez who died at 3AM Sunday morning after his speed-boat overturned and we went to sleep with the news of Arnold Palmer passing away late Sunday afternoon.
Both were major stories which transcended sports as the world mourned Arnold Palmer's greatness and Jose Fernandez's potential but one thing that bothered me was that they were both referred to as tragedies.
Jose Fernandez was a 24 year old pitcher with the potential to be one of the games best, Arnold had once been a superstar golfer a half a century ago and was still one the sports best ambassadors but he was 87 years old. There is no tragedy in dying at 87 years old.. I'm sure he left a wife, a bunch of kids and grandkids and for them it's tragic, but for Arnie.. the guy was dubbed The King, ruled the golf world for a decade, had 62 tour wins including 7 majors AND had drink named after him, come on.
He lived the perfect life, was able to enjoy it all till the end, which from all accounts came quickly and relatively painlessly. He'll be missed as an ambassador and probably as a great man but his death is not tragic.
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