Grayson Murray exhibits off his trophy after successful the Sony Open in Honolulu, Jan. 14, 2024. (AP Picture/Matt York)
Whereas snow and freezing temperatures blanketed a lot of the continental United States this weekend, the PGA Tour was in Honolulu for the Sony Open. With temperatures within the mid-70s, the battle for the title between Grayson Murray, Keegan Bradley and Byeong Hun An obtained even hotter.
All three wanted a playoff to find out the champion once they ended up carding a 3-under 67 and due to a clutch birdie putt from 39 feetMurray emerged victorious. Bradley and An missed their heels for birdie to offer Murray the win.
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39 FEET FOR THE WINNER!
Grayson Murray wins @SonyOpenHawaii in dramatic fashion! pic.twitter.com/C86sTS4O7a
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 15, 2024
After his second PGA Tour victory (his first on the Barbasol Championship as a rookie in 2017), the 30-year-old mirrored on his journey.
“A whole lot of laborious work pays off,” he told NBC on the inexperienced afterwards. “It's not straightforward, you recognize? Many occasions I wished to surrender – quit on myself, quit on golf, typically quit on life.”
Murray's struggles with alcoholism, melancholy and nervousness have been documented for years. Three years in the past, in the identical match in the identical metropolis the place he received on Sunday, Murray was concerned in an incident at a lodge bar that resulted within the PGA Tour being placed on probation.
He earned a status for alcohol-fueled rants on social media directed on the Tour itself and different gamers, and within the fall of 2022 he crashed his scooter into oncoming site visitors.
In a final ditch effort to save lots of his profession and life, Murray entered rehab. Because of God's therapeutic throughout a month-long rehab interval and having a robust assist system round him, Murray has now been eight months sober.
When NBC requested about his Sony Open championship in gentle of his previous, he pointed to Christ who redeems all issues.
“Jesus Christ comes first,” Murray mentioned. “With out Him, none of this could be potential. He simply gave me a platform to jot down a brand new story, to jot down my very own story. I hope everybody watching at house will get a little bit inspiration from me. If I assist only one individual, that's sufficient.”
He later continued: “I knew right now was not going to alter my life. My fiancee (Christiana) modified my life. Jesus Christ modified my life. As we speak didn't change my life, nevertheless it modified my profession a little bit bit.”
“Jesus Christ comes first.”
— Golfer Grayson Murray offers all of the glory to God after an unimaginable victory on the match on Sunday @SonyOpenHawaii.pic.twitter.com/3r5ijpzUig
— Sports activities Spectrum (@Sports_Spectrum) January 15, 2024
Along with his win on the Sony Open, Murray can now rely on taking part in in all the PGA Tour's remaining signature occasions this 12 months, together with his first journey to the Masters in April. Nonetheless, it received't be the largest occasion in Murray's life that month; he and Christiana are additionally set to marry on April 27 close to his childhood house in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Christiana was an integral a part of Murray's assist system. She helped him in his restoration, his return to the PGA Tour after a while on the decrease stage of the Korn Ferry Tour, and most significantly, his rising religion in Christ. Based on Murray, she even prayed with him earlier than Sunday's playoff.
“We simply mentioned a prayer,” Murray defined in his press convention after the Sony Open. “We prayed that the nice Lord would watch over us and it doesn’t matter what the result was going to be, it will not change life. She and I are nonetheless a son and daughter of Jesus Christ and that may by no means change.”
Murray admitted that in his youthful years he typically drank throughout match weeks. He even received the Barbasol Championship whereas hanging every single day. Early success made him really feel invincible, which added to his spiral. Ultimately, he mentioned at his press convention, it was God who protected him and led him to rehab, the place he obtained the assistance he wanted.
“The Lord was watching over me then and He's positively watching over me now,” he mentioned. “My story doesn't finish.” I believe it's simply getting began. I hope that I can encourage lots of people who’ve their very own issues sooner or later. …
“I grew up within the church and my household are robust Christians. I believe I uncared for that a part of my life for some time and assembly me fiancee and as our lives have modified a little bit over the previous three years, she has given her life to Christ and I’ve given my life to Christ. That would be the first in our future relationship.”
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