Industry News

Grayson Murray Foundation partners with Ben Hogan Foundation in first major contribution

Foundation in Murray’s honor announces donation to help children who have lost a parent to suicide; PGA Tour, Korn Ferry Tour tournaments show support on one-year anniversary of Murray’s passing

RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA and FORT WORTH, TEXAS – As the one-year mark of PGA TOUR player Grayson Murray’s passing approaches, the Grayson Murray Foundation announced today their first official partnership. The Grayson Murray Foundation will partner with the Ben Hogan Foundation as the two organizations align to support those impacted by mental health challenges.

Based in Fort Worth, Texas, the Ben Hogan Foundation was established in 2007 to ensure that, in Ben Hogan’s absence, the characteristics he personified throughout his life – resilience, courage, determination and perseverance – are recognized, rewarded and encouraged in the young people and veterans of today.

The partnership includes a $20,000 donation to The Ben Hogan Resilience Program, a comprehensive support initiative offering mental health support, academic resources and job training for children who have lost a parent to suicide. Hogan was nine when he lost his father to suicide.

The Ben Hogan Foundation will name a educational and support scholarship for Grayson Murray.   

“We are so grateful to the Grayson Murray Foundation for this contribution to the Ben Hogan Foundation and to be their first official partner,” said Ben Hogan Foundation Executive Director Chad Cruson. “While generations apart, Ben Hogan and Grayson Murray are deeply connected through both the game of golf and their own personal experiences, and we’re honored to bring their legacies together to support those impacted by mental health challenges.”

Hogan was a 64-time PGA TOUR winner and a five-time winner of the Charles Schwab Challenge, played this week at Colonial Country Club.

“We’re excited to partner with the Ben Hogan Foundation,” said Grayson Murray Foundation President Jeff Maness. “Their goal to recognize Hogan’s characteristics he personified through his life go hand-in-hand with our goal to continue Murray’s legacy of resilience, compassion and hope through the Grayson Murray Foundation, and we look forward to the impact we’ll have together.” 

Eric and Terry Murray and Erica Robinson, parents and sister of Grayson Murray, presented the donation to the Ben Hogan Foundation, at a ceremony at Colonial Country Club. The Charles Schwab Challenge was the last PGA TOUR event Murray played prior to his passing on May 25, 2024, at the age of 30.

During the ceremony, the Charles Schwab Challenge and Fort Worth Colonial Charities Inc. presented a $10,000 donation to the Grayson Murray Foundation ahead of efforts to honor Murray’s memory during tournament week. “GM” buttons featuring elements of the Grayson Murray Foundation logo will be available to players, caddies, volunteers, and staff, and attendees are encouraged to wear green on Saturday, the official color of Mental Health Awareness Month in May.

“The PGA TOUR is a family and Grayson’s passing deeply affected us all,” said Charles Schwab Challenge Tournament Director Michael Tothe. “As a tournament played during Mental Health Awareness Month, the Charles Schwab Challenge is honored to support the Grayson Murray Foundation and the incredible work the organization is doing to help others impacted by mental health challenges.”

Murray, who recorded five wins across the PGA TOUR and Korn Ferry Tour, was open about his personal experience with anxiety, depression and addiction. Tournaments across both Tours are carrying on Murray’s legacy of compassion, resilience and hope. 

On Korn Ferry Tour, the AdventHealth Championship, won by Murray in 2023 and played last week in Kansas City, Missouri, presented the “Grayson Murray Be Kind to One Another Legacy Award” to past PGA TOUR member and two-time Korn Ferry Tour winner Josh Teater. This week on the Korn Ferry Tour, the Visit Knoxville Open (May 22-25) in Tennessee will provide green “GM” buttons to the field. The UNC Health Championship presented by STITCH, played in Murray’s hometown of Raleigh, North Carolina on May 29-June 1, will have an honorary tee time and ceremony for Murray among other ways the tournament will honor the Raleigh native.

 Launched in January 2025, the Grayson Murray Foundation’s mission is to raise awareness and support of mental health and addiction challenges faced by individuals from all walks of life. The Foundation aims to create a noticeable impact on mental health and addiction care by supporting innovative research, expanding access to essential services and fostering a culture of understanding inspired by Murray’s legacy of compassion, resilience and hope.

 The Grayson Murray Foundation will host its first annual “Grayson Murray Classic,” a celebrity pro-am golf tournament and gala charity fundraiser in October 2025. 

 If you are experiencing a mental health crisis, please call the national suicide and crisis lifeline in the United States at 988 or visit their website at 988lifeline.org.

About Grayson Murray Foundation
Grayson Murray Foundation is a federally recognized 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit organization. To learn more about Grayson Murray Foundation or to make a tax-deductible donation, please visit graysonmurrayfoundation.com or contact Foundation President Jeff Maness at jeff@graysonmurrayfoundation.com.

Grayson Murray Foundation
Post Office Box 176
Garner, NC 27529

If you are experiencing a mental health crisis, please call the national suicide and crisis lifeline in the United States at 988 or visit their website at 988lifeline.org.

About Ben Hogan Foundation
The Ben Hogan Foundation was established in 2007 to ensure that in Ben Hogan’s absence, the characteristics that he personified throughout his life; resilience, courage, determination and perseverance – are recognized, rewarded and encouraged in the young people and veterans of today. The Ben Hogan Foundation accomplishes this work through tournaments, scholarships and programs and with the incredible support of ongoing partners and sponsors who provide the regular funding that a non-profit needs to maintain daily operations. To learn more about the Ben Hogan Foundation, please visit benhoganfoundation.org or contact Executive Director Chad Cruson at chad@benhoganfoundation.org.

About Charles Schwab Challenge
The Charles Schwab Challenge is one of America’s oldest and most celebrated PGA TOUR events. Held annually at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, TX, since 1946 the Charles Schwab Challenge is the longest running PGA TOUR tournament held at the same venue – 79 years.  Praised as one of America’s greatest championship golf courses, Colonial played host to the 1941 Men’s U.S. Open, 1991 U.S. Women’s Open and the 1975 Tournament Players Championship. Colonial is known as “Hogan’s Alley,” and probably always will, for no one man ever dominated a major golf tournament like Ben Hogan did at Colonial. In his hometown of Fort Worth, Hogan was victorious at Colonial five times.  Appropriately, Hogan’s final career PGA TOUR win was his fifth at Colonial in 1959. 

About PGA TOUR
By showcasing golf’s greatest players, the PGA TOUR engages, inspires and positively impacts our fans, partners and communities worldwide.

The PGA TOUR, headquartered in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, co-sanctions tournaments on the PGA TOUR, PGA TOUR Champions, Korn Ferry Tour, PGA TOUR Americas and administers PGA TOUR Q-School presented by Korn Ferry and PGA TOUR University. TOUR members represent the world’s best players, hailing from 28 countries and territories. Showcasing the biggest moments in the sport with history and legacy on the line, the PGA TOUR has long-term domestic distribution partnerships for broadcast coverage on CBS, NBC and Golf Channel and video streaming service on ESPN+. Internationally, PGA TOUR coverage is available across 200+ countries and territories in 30 languages via 39 broadcast and digital partners. Virtually all tournaments are organized as non-profit organizations to maximize charitable giving, and to date, tournaments across all Tours have generated more than $4 billion.

Fans can follow the PGA TOUR  via: the PGA TOUR app and PGATOUR.COM; social media channels, including YouTubeFacebookInstagram (in SpanishKorean and Japanese), LinkedInTikTok, X (in EnglishSpanish and Japanese); the PGA TOUR Channel on Free Ad-Supported Television (FAST) platforms such as the Roku Channel, Samsung TV Plus, PlutoTV, Xumo, LG Channels, Tubi, Amazon’s Freevee, FireTV and Alexa devices; and WhatsApp (in English and Spanish),  WeChatWeiboToutiao and Douyin.

CONTACT
Jeff Maness, Grayson Murray Foundation, jeff@graysonmurrayfoundation.com
Chad Cruson, Ben Hogan Foundation, chad@benhoganfoundation.org
Amanda Herrington, PGA TOUR, amandaherrington@pgatourhq.com


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