Grayson Murray chats about his emotional win at the Sony Open, his parents’ help through alcoholism, and his 1st Masters
all right Garrett Johnson here joined by
Grayson Murray and Grayson really
emotional win for you earlier this year
uh just coming big comeback for you and
how did that feel emotionally to to get
that win uh there in Hawaii I mean I
know we could see it meant a lot to you
yeah I mean it meant uh a lot just um
for my personal life and ALS also my um
you know as far as my career goes it was
a felt like it was kind of a a burden
that was lifted off my shoulders a
little bit um just kind of a struggle
the last few years on and off you know
the corn fairy and BJ tour and not
really um having a a one tour to play on
for a few years you know bouncing back
and forth and um obviously when you went
out here it freeze you up um for two
years and um you know it’s nice to be
back out here where I I think I deserve
to play um just because I I think my
game um you know can can correlate to to
all these golf courses that we play and
um you know I’m excited to play against
the best play players in the world each
and every week and um you know the corn
fairy tour is is a great steping Stone
obviously to get back to here and um I
don’t discredit my two wins that I had
last year on that tour to really um give
me the confidence to get it done at Sony
um I think if you win on any tour around
the world um the corn fairy and and the
PGA are are very similar when it comes
to um you know you see a lot of success
right away from the guys who come from
the corn fairy tour and um there were a
lot of great players out there so it
built built a lot of confidence off of
those wins but you know going into Sony
I didn’t expect anything um it was kind
of just a normal week for me and first
week with my fiance on the road was
really special to uh share that moment
with and you looked at like a man at
peace there on that Sunday it really
just seemed like you had your emotions
kind of collected like what do you make
of that yeah I um I I rewatched a little
bit of it just so I can you know kind of
learn from it and um yeah kind of what I
took from it I felt like um I was in
control all day and um you know we we I
was playing with Keegan obviously who
was in the playoff with me and um you
know he was a world class player and it
wasn’t going to be an easy day I knew
that from the start and um it if
anything it proved to me that like you
don’t have to have like your best to get
it done sometimes but you just have to
hang in there and that’s what I did all
day and um yeah super positive attitude
all week and
um I think that’s what I’ve gotten
really good at um that I still continue
to work on hard is when you aren’t
starting all like let’s say like that
event I I was three over through eight
holes to start the start the week and um
you know in the past I think that would
have got to me and um having Jay on the
bag and you know we just we just said
let’s let’s try to get it under par you
know um shooting the shooting the red
numbers on the first day somehow and
that’s what we did and that just kept us
in it and I always tell people like you
know a four Round Golf Tournament it’s
not your good days that win it’s it’s
your bad days that win you the
tournament and if um you know the best
players in the world like your Scotty
shefflers and your Victors and Rory’s
they seem to always have their bad days
still be under par and um you know
they’re obviously their good days can go
really low and um but it’s all about
really managing your your days that you
really don’t have it and keep it under
par well what did it mean to your mom in
particular because I know you mentioned
on the five clubs podcast that she told
you about your drinking habits in the
past that hey once you put it down I
just know your talent is going to really
shine through so like what did that mean
to you um that that she got to see that
happen really you really did follow
through yeah I mean um it’s a testament
to what she said um and she’s told me
that you know a lot of times and I I
really wasn’t listening because I just
didn’t I wasn’t in the frame of mind to
want to listen to that type of advice
she’s a
real there we go there we go little
little loud a little loud that’s okay we
just got to caddy turn the car on here
in the distance
um might need to turn it off sorry we’re
Bing in
here no but uh you know my mom and dad
both are really you know huge supporters
and and my mom my mom has such a uh such
a good outlook on life in general she
went through a horrific accident um when
I was little and I think it turned her
perspective on life and she’s really in
into her faith and um um in the last
couple years she’s had some um some some
deaths in the family that were you know
her mom and her great aunt and uncle
were were pretty much they died within a
few days of each other and um you know
just seeing her going through all that
and and obviously her accident years ago
it how strong she is um when she tells
me something like that um I listen now
because um I I I really truly believe
that she comes from uh a place where uh
it’s it’s been really hard for her to uh
she’s seen dark times and she’s gotten
through him and
um I think she really just doesn’t want
to see her you know son I’m one of three
so um one of three kids and she just
wants to see us all be happy most
importantly um and I think when she knew
that um I finally was able to stop
drinking um she knew my talent was
always there and um she kept reminding
me like you know when I was a kid like
you know the parents or the or even the
kids in the in the in the tournament
would always say oh is Grayson playing
oh well we’re playing for second now and
you know that was the attitude I had
when I was a kid and it wasn’t arrogance
it wasn’t Cockiness it was just like I
was really good and um you know it’s
hard to get back to that mentality out
here cuz you know you’re playing against
guys that were just just as good as me
as a kid um but there is some type of
levelness that you have to have within
yourself to tell yourself that I am one
of the best and I belong out here and um
just her encouraging words is always um
is always meaningful yeah and I would
imagine there’s some level of Freedom
playing out here now that I think you’re
about 10 or 11 months sober from from
drinking and that’s got to free you up
in in a lot of ways I’d imagine right it
does um I mentioned in in Gary Gary’s
podcast um that you alluded to um going
to bed at night like my parents don’t
have to worry you know getting that
phone call which is probably the best
gift I can give them um you know they
they uh obviously am at more peace and
and um you know giving them that peace
of mind it’s now they can focus on just
being loving parents and now they’re
grandparents so um focus on being you
know the best grandparents they can be
and um I hope that adds a lot of life to
their to their life uh they’re getting
up there my dad’s about to be 74 and you
know I just want to see him his last you
know hopefully he’s got 20 year more
years in him but his last 20 years be
like the best years of his life for um
because because I make it you know
easier on them right and just uh closing
up uh the Masters obviously first chance
at Augusta National coming up how much
you looking forward to that opportunity
yeah you know I’ve always dreamed about
it like I’ve watched so many I feel like
I’ve played it a million times in my
head just watching tiger and you know
some of those some of those great uh
tournaments in the past and um yeah I’m
I’m obviously looking really really
forward to it and and um you know it’s
going to be a busy week like my first
one there’s going to be a lot of family
and friends kind of come down and and
support me and um you know they know
that um I just want to make sure you’re
still getting it yeah yeah I they know
that it’s business still and um I’m
going to treat it just like a normal
tournament um I don’t want to overhype
it um I’ve played in Majors before and
um the the best I think advice I can
give myself is just uh go in there
prepared and know that um you got what
it takes to play well and um you know I
think uh asking guys you know around
around the tour um for advice they they
just basically say
um that those exact words you know they
say don’t treat it don’t treat don’t try
to overhype it um a lot of guys will get
there and want to just be around around
the place so much and they get tired out
by Thursday rolls around so really just
conserve as much energy as possible
that’s what I’m going to try to take and
last thing is there are certain part of
the course a certain uh annual event
over there that you’re most excited
about tradition um I just think uh I
think it’ll be special doing the part
three with my fiance um seeing her in
that white Bib and she plays a little
golf herself so definitely going to get
her to hit a few shots um you have to I
mean come on on the scene yeah and I
might even put one of her clubs in my
bag just so she’ll you know not have to
choke way up on one of my irons but um
yeah I think it’ll just be so special
having her there and um you know her mom
and dad will be there as well and um
anytime you can spend uh a week with
your with your favorite people uh it
just makes it that much more special and
um you know I wish we could do it more
often but you know everyone has their
daily life they have to go about and um
you know I hope I hope we can make it a
tradition every year to for Augusta
