One of Grayson Murray’s peers from the world of professional sports shared a hopeful exchange he had with the late golfer weeks before his death.
At a Monday, June 3, celebration of life ceremony for Murray — who died by suicide on May 25 — Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Jaccob Slavin spoke about his friend.
“I was texting with Grayson a couple of weeks ago,” Slavin, 30, said at Providence Church in Raleigh, North Carolina. “We were still in the playoffs. He was fired up for us and had all the belief in us, even as we were down 3-0 in a series against the Rangers.”
As Slavin explained, the text conversation came at a time of great success for Murray — a Raleigh native who was a massive Hurricanes fan — on the golf course.
Late pro golfer Grayson Murray and fiancée Christiana Ritchie’s romance blossomed over their shared passion for faith. “I grew up going to church and my family [are] strong Christians. I think I neglected that part of my life for a while, and meeting my fiancée and how our lives kind of changed over the last […]
“He had just had a top-10 finish in the tournament he was in,” Slavin continued. “He was talking about how his focus for that week was just on humility. I had brought up to him how Jesus was all about humility. His response to me was, ‘Bro, Jesus is everything. He’s eternity.’”
Slavin continued, “We had an exchange back and forth a little bit more. He then went on to say, ‘I say life on Earth is a pregame to the real party. Let’s enjoy while Jesus put us here for this short time, but recognize he has a purpose for us while we’re here. To impact people.’”
Before leading a group prayer, Slavin concluded his comments, saying, “Grayson had eternity and Jesus on his mind, and now he’s up there worshiping God.”
Jaccob Slavin Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images
Murray was also eulogized by his longtime coach Ted Kiegiel, who discussed how Murray had been successful in battling alcoholism in the time leading up to his death.
“From the spring of ’23 to the spring of ’24, sobriety was a part of Grayson’s life,” Kiegiel said. “When that cleansing took place for him, a veil really came down from his eyes. He was a completely different person. He was in full stride. Everything was in alignment in his life.”
Kiegiel continued, “I can just tell you he burned the brightest for those 12 months when sobriety was a part of his life.”
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Over the weekend, Murray was remembered by many of his peers competing in the PGA Tour’s RBC Canadian Open.
Golfer Akshay Bhatia honored Murray with a tattoo on his wrist during the tournament, calling Murray one of his “best buddies” on tour.
“I think his story and everything that’s happened has really opened everyone’s eyes. It just doesn’t happen that often,” Bhatia said before the tournament. “The amount of appreciation and just uplifting energy from everyone across the world and on the PGA Tour has been great for his family.”
He continued, “We’re grateful for that because sometimes you feel like no one really cares about you, but the fact that he’s touched this many people’s hearts, my heart, he’s made me just really open my eyes a little bit.”
