‘I know I will see him in heaven’: Talk show host recalls friendship with deceased golfer Grayson Murray

Professional golfer Grayson Murray, who tragically took his own life May 25, left a legacy of faith and loving others despite his mental struggles. 

Ben Ferguson, a longtime talk show host and conservative commentator, spoke about his close friendship with Murray in an interview with Chris Stigall.  

“I look at this opportunity to talk about Grayson as a way to honor him,” Ferguson began. “He loved people. I know he’s in heaven; he loved the Lord.  

“[But] life is hard. You don’t know what people are going through. It can be one minute you’re on the [Masters] golf course, next minute it’s all over.”  

Ferguson crossed paths with Murray through his amateur golfing, and the two became good friends.  

“This was a guy who was trying to find his way,” Ferguson recalled thinking. “He was trying to figure out how to fit in among professionals, and he was the most talented golfer I’d ever seen swing the club.” 

But Murray struggled with chronic anxiety, depression and alcoholism – even after becoming a Christian.  

“He went [to rehab] once and it didn’t really click,” Ferguson explained. “He got back out, and he was trying to find his way and he ended up going back again a second time, and that’s when I think he really started to find Christ. You could see much more recently that there was real, fundamental change.” 

Having lost a good friend and college roommate to suicide, Ferguson already knew the importance of being present for people during hardship. 

“Check on your people and ask them real questions,” he said. “I always tried to ask him real questions from losing my first friend. [I’d say,] ‘I don’t want your BS answer, how are you doing?’ And [Murray] would tell me, ‘I’m struggling.’”  

But even after great professional success, Murray continued to struggle. 

“He was overwhelmed. I think he was just dealing with a bout, and you have bouts when you deal with anxiety and depression,” Ferguson said. “And winning golf tournaments doesn’t fix it.  

“So, if you think money buys happiness, it doesn’t.” 

He encouraged the audience to reach out and ask for help if they are struggling, noting it can be especially difficult for men to do so.  

“Men are the ones who are supposed to be the warriors and not talk about [their] feelings,” he observed. “That’s not good; that’s not healthy. It’s okay to cry, it’s okay to laugh, it’s okay to love.” 

Looking back, Ferguson refuses to believe that Murray’s mental illness – or even his life’s tragic end – undermines the sincerity of his Christian faith.  

“[Murray] was a believer who struggled with anxiety, depression and alcoholism, and that’s real,” he commented. “He lived life to the fullest. He was trying to live for Christ, and he was an incredible human being that reached out to others, loved others. 

“I will forever be grateful for my friendship with him. I will forever be grateful that he was in my life, and I know that I will see him in heaven one day.”