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HONOLULU – On the primary gap of a three-man playoff on the Sony Open in Hawaii, Grayson Murray confronted a 40-foot birdie putt. Each of his opponents – Byeong Hun (Ben) An and Keegan Bradley – have been nicely inside him, with An 4 toes from presumably his first win. Murray figured one if not each of them would make their birdie putts, so he knew he needed to give his putt an opportunity. Did he ever.
His left-to-right breaking putt straightened out because it neared the outlet and disappeared, heart minimize. When neither An nor Bradley transformed their birdie putts, Murray was a champion once more on the PGA Tour for the primary time in six years, 5 months and 22 days.
“I stored telling Jay, (his caddie), we’re hitting good putts, we’re hitting them proper the place we would like, and we’re going to have one drop right this moment, and it’s going to be massive… and it is likely to be for the win.”
39 FEET FOR THE WIN!
Grayson Murray is victorious @SonyOpenHawaii in dramatic trend! pic.twitter.com/C86sTS4O7a
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 15, 2024
Murray closed in 3-under 67 on Sunday at Waialae Nation Membership, together with a clutch birdie at 18 in regulation to power his manner into the playoff with a 72-hole complete of 17-under 263.
That he returned to the winner’s circle in Hawaii of all locations is becoming because it was web site of one among his lowest factors. Three years in the past throughout this event, Murray was concerned in an incident at a lodge bar the place lots of the gamers stayed, and the Tour positioned him on probation.
“Why was I drunk?” he posted on social media. “As a result of I’m an alcoholic that hates all the pieces to do with the PGA Tour life and that’s my scapegoat.”
However, Murray confirmed nice promise on the course, successful the 2017 Barbasol Championship regardless of consuming throughout event week and admitting on Sunday that he performed three days hungover when he gained.
“Smartest thing and worst factor that ever occurred to me was successful my rookie 12 months,” he stated. “I believe the alcohol introduced a facet out of me that wasn’t me. It was form of the monster in me in a manner.”
However the early success proved to be short-lived. He struggled to make cuts and conceded he was jealous of the gamers he grew up competing towards, who have been having higher success. Alongside the best way, he had a Twitter spat with a fellow participant, suffered a scooter accident in 2022 in Bermuda, and threatened to stop on a number of events. Murray additionally handled anxiousness and melancholy, and stated there have been days he didn’t need to get away from bed.
Grayson Murray celebrates with Akshay Bhatia after successful the 2023 Sony Open in Hawaii at Waialae Nation Membership in Honolulu, Hawaii. (Photograph: Michael Reaves/Getty Photographs)
“I simply thought I used to be a failure,” he stated. “I believed I had loads of expertise that was only a waste of expertise.”
Murray finally entered rehab and stated he’s been sober for eight months.
“It was by selection,” he stated. “It was time.”
He regained exempt standing on the PGA Tour this season after successful twice on the Korn Ferry Tour final 12 months and got down to deal with his return to the massive leagues as a brand new starting.
“I stated, ‘Hey, look, I’ve a possibility right here,’” Murray recounted. “Most likely haven’t reached my prime but. I can get on an excellent strong 10-year run, and that’s what I plan on doing. I’m in such a great spot proper now the place I don’t need to change something I’m doing.”
His caddie, Jay Inexperienced, referred to as the change in Murray “evening and day,” and added, “What I knew of him was off Twitter and his off-course points. He’s bought loads of help now and he’s residing a disciplined life.”
Murray is engaged to be married on April 27, and his fiancée, Christiana, walked the ultimate holes and the playoff with fellow professional Tom Hoge’s father. Murray met her three years in the past on the American Categorical, the week after his incident throughout the Sony Open.
Grayson Murray and fiancee Christiana pose with the trophy successful the 2023 Sony Open in Hawaii at Waialae Nation Membership in Honolulu, Hawaii. (Photograph: Michael Reaves/Getty Photographs)
“I can’t wait to do life with you,” she stated when requested what she wished to say to Murray after the win. “That’s going to be our marriage ceremony music.”
Murray shot 64 within the third spherical to share the 54-hole lead with Bradley. Earlier than the ultimate spherical, Josh Gregory, his short-game coach, tried to downplay the duty at hand, saying enjoying nicely would possibly do one thing for his golf profession however it wouldn’t change his life. “I simply used that mentality,” Murray stated.
He stayed affected person, making eight straight pars to begin the ultimate spherical earlier than birdies at Nos. 9 and 10. With the ultimate group on the 14th gap, there have been 5 gamers tied for the lead at 16 below. At 18, Murray flighted a wedge from 78 yards inside three toes to match Bradley’s 67 and tied An (64), who two-putted for birdie forward of him to get to 17 below.
The tee shot on the dog-leg left 18th, the primary playoff gap, doesn’t arrange nicely for Murray, a fader, particularly with the wind off the left. He tugged it off the tee within the playoff, clipping a palm frond and had no selection however to put up. He wedged 40 toes left of the outlet. Throughout regulation, his caddie watched Sam Stevens depart a putt on the identical line brief. Murray made certain he didn’t make the identical mistake and broke into lusty fist pumps when he canned the putt.
“I really like making big-time putts in big-time moments,” he stated. “I’m by no means going to again down from a celebration.”
Bradley had made a clutch 20-foot birdie putt at 15 to imagine the lead however performed the par-5 18th in two pars.
“This is without doubt one of the hardest losses I’ve ever had in my profession, if not the toughest,” stated Bradley, who missed to the left on his 17-foot birdie putt to increase the playoff. “I performed adequate to win. However typically it’s simply not fairly adequate, and that was one among these weeks.”
An shoved his 4-foot putt that will have pressured one other gap with Murray to the suitable and it didn’t even contact the cup.
“It’s a disgrace it ended that manner,” An stated. “It hurts, however what are you going to do.”
Murray is proud that he’s successful the battle together with his demons and his watery eyes have been one indication of how rewarding it was to see his arduous work paying off.
“It’s not straightforward, you already know. I need to quit loads of instances, quit on myself, quit on the sport of golf, quit on life at instances,” he stated. “Simply persevere, and once you get uninterested in preventing let another person struggle for you.”
That remaining line was a reference to one thing Murray believed was stated by former North Carolina State males’s basketball coach Jim Valvano however truly is credited to ESPN’s Stuart Scott, who died of most cancers in 2015. Regardless, Murray stated these phrase had lifted him up and helped him write this subsequent chapter of his redemption story.
“My story shouldn’t be completed,” Murray stated. “I believe it’s simply starting. I hope I can encourage lots of people going ahead which have their very own points.”
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