The 2024 RBC Canadian Open began on Thursday. PGA Tour golfer Akshay Bhatia wrote “G$” on his wrist in marker before playing his first round. He wrote it to honor his late friend Grayson Murray.
Grayson Murray passed away on May 25th at the age of 30.
Bhatia finished his first round at 69, 1-under par. He spoke with media after his first round and spoke about his tribute to Grayson Murray and the impact Murray had on his life.
“Oh, God, I didn’t think it would be this hard. Yeah, I wrote G-money today. He’s one of my best buddies out here, grew up together. I looked up to him for a long time,” Bhatia said. “I wish he was still here, but I know he’s here watching above everyone. Yeah, it’s just crazy. Like I was driving yesterday, or a couple days ago, going back from dinner back to the hotel, and for whatever reason, I looked to the right, and there was a trash can with G-money on it. Just freaky stuff happens like that where I know he’s with us.”
Several PGA golfers have taken to social media to celebrate the life of the two-time PGA Tour winner.
“I’m playing for him this week, and every round I play for the next however long. Yeah, he’s just with me all the time, and he meant a lot to me. Just happy and proud to wear Grayson’s name on my wrist.”
This is Akshay Bhatia’s first appearance at Hamilton Golf & Country Club. Bhatia made the cut at last year's RBC Canadian open and eventually tied for 68th.
Bhatia has participated in 15 events this season and has finished in the top 265 seven times. He also won the Valero Texas Open.
Success on this level was something Bhatia says Murray hinted at years ago.
“I just remember when I was 13, 14 years old, I’d see him on the putting green at our golf course, and I’d ask him what’s it like being on the PGA Tour? It’s just so cool, right?,” Bhatia sais. “And he was always like, ‘Dude, you’re going to be there. Trust me.’ I don’t know, he just always believed in me.”
Bubba Watsons, PGA Tour golfers remember Grayson Murray
Famous golfer Bubba Watson, who is now part of LIV Golf, expressed his condolences last weekend after Murray's death was confirmed.
“Very sad to hear the news of Grayson Murray’s passing today,” Watson tweeted. “Life is so fragile… I was just hugging you at the Masters, telling you how proud of you I am. Thankful to have known you. My deepest condolences to his family and friends during this difficult time. He will be missed.”
Several other PGA Tour players paid their tributes to Murray. Peter Malnati gave an emotional interview to CBS Sports talking about Murray. Malnati and Adam Schenk played alongside Murray in his final days.
“I didn't know Grayson all that well, but I spent the last two days with him,” Malnati said. “It's funny, we get so worked up out here about a bad break here or a good break there. We're so competitive. We're so competitive out here. We all want to beat each other. Then something like this happens, and you realize, ‘We're all just humans.'”
“It's a huge loss for all of us on the PGA Tour, it's a huge loss for our fans,” Malnati added. “In a time like this you realize that as much as we want to beat each other and as much as we want to be competitive, we're one big family. And we lost one today, and that's terrible.”
Follow Us
Subscribe
