Grayson Murray dies at 30: PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan, professional golfers react to ‘tremendous loss for all of us’
After professional golfer Grayson Murray died this weekend After withdrawing in the second round of the Charles Schwab Challenge, PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan and other competitors responded immediately Saturday at Colonial Country Club and beyond.
Monahan sat down with CBS Sports’ Amanda Balionis to discuss the tragic situation shortly after his arrival in Fort Worth, Texas.
“There is brotherhood here” Monahan he said. “There’s a family here. And I just want to be here with the players, our caddies, our families that are here. This is a close-knit community on the PGA Tour, and to be in the room changing clothes and watching the devastation on the faces of every player who came in was really hard to see and really profound.”
Monahan added that Murray, 30, is an excellent player but also “a very courageous person” because of the way he plays. work to improve your life after battling anxiety, depression and alcohol abuse.
Players at the Charles Schwab Challenge were informed of Murray’s death as they finished the third round. Because of the timing, many of them found out about the news after the round and reacted immediately.
“Yeah, obviously the news hasn’t really sunk in yet, but I’m thinking about his family and praying,” said Scottie Scheffler, the world No. 1 player who shot 63 on Saturday. for all of them”. “I can’t imagine how difficult this time has been. I’ve gotten to know Grayson a little better over the past six months or so, and yeah, there’s really no way to describe how sad and tragic it is. any.” is so. But I’m thinking about his family.”
“It was a big shock,” Webb Simpson told CBS Sports. Simpson and Murray have known each other since Murray’s youth. “My heart sank. I had been participating in a grassroots tournament for 14 years – the Webb Simpson Challenge – he was the first winner. I remember as if it was the day he received the trophy. I knew he was going to go on to be a great player from day one.
“I just played with him in Charlotte the first two days. We had a great time together. His game looks so good. I just hate it. I hate it so much. I don’t even understand him over this year — we shared a meal together at Pebble Beach with his fiancee. I know she’s hurting and everyone associated with Grayson Murray is hurting .I know that he came to faith in Jesus Christ this year, I think that’s how it is. I miss him, but I’m grateful that he was in the right place with his faith before it happened happened this morning.”
Peter Malnati, who played alongside Murray in the first two rounds at Colonial, cried during the interview.
“I don’t know Grayson very well but I’ve spent the last two days with him,” Malnati said. “It’s funny, here we’re so stressed about a bad break here or a good break there. We’re very competitive. We’re very competitive here. We’re all want to beat each other. Then something like this happens, and you realize, ‘We’re all just human.’
“It was a really difficult day because you look at Grayson and you see someone who has clearly struggled in the past and he’s been open about it. And you see him putting his life back together.” where he feels good about everything. I was with him yesterday. He was very good at golf.”
Malnati then told the story of how Wake Forest coach Jerry Haas – father of Bill Haas and former coach of Simpson and Will Zalatoris – once told him that Murray was the most talented player to ever step foot on the field. Wake Forest campus.
“It’s a huge loss for all of us on the PGA Tour, it’s a huge loss for our fans,” Malnati said. “In a time like this, you realize that no matter how much we want to beat each other and compete, we are still one big family. And today we lost someone, it’s terrible. “
Others like Justin Thomas, Luke Donald and Bubba Watson shared some of their thoughts via social media.
