The parents of late golfer Grayson Murray reflected on their son’s enduring legacy and the final days of his life.
Eric and Terry Murray spoke to Today about the death of Grayson, who died by suicide at age 30 in May 2024.
“It’s a nightmare, and it doesn’t stop,” Eric told Today’s Carson Daly in a segment that aired on Monday, February 24.
Grayson, a two-time winner on the PGA Tour who had been candid about his mental health journey, was found dead in his Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, home the day after withdrawing from a tournament in Texas citing illness.
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“He tried to get better,” Eric said. “He did everything he could.”
Grayson entered rehab for alcoholism in 2021 and also sought treatment for social anxiety and depression, but his mother explained how his lifestyle didn’t make things easy on her son.
“He would go and drink and gamble,” Terry said. “That was tough for him out on the road.”
According to Golf Digest, Grayson admitted to losing more than $400,000 from gambling in 2017.
When things became excessively difficult, Terry said the family home became a sanctuary for Grayson.
“He would put on a happy face out on the road,” she explained. “Our house became a safe haven. If he was depressed, he would go in his room and he wouldn’t come out for two or three days.”
Eric defined these periods of time for his son as “deep tunnels or dark holes” while recalling one of Grayson’s final trips to the house.
“We sat on the sofa and we both sat there and cried,” he said. “I was holding him like a baby. He was talking about how hard it was physically and emotionally to keep doing what he’s doing.”
Seeing the toll it was taking on him, Eric even tried getting Grayson to give up golf to focus on himself.
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“I actually asked him to do that,” he said. “But Grayson loved golf. There’s no place on Earth that he was happier than on the golf course. But at the same time, it was very difficult.”
The month before his death, Grayson accomplished a lifelong goal by competing in his first Masters tournament. It’s a memory that’s been forever enshrined in the Murray family home.
“We have a picture of him at the Masters hanging up above the sofa,” Terry said. “I look up there every day.”
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org.
