Rory McIlroy calls for kindness after death of Grayson Murray

Rory McIlroy believes the death of two-time PGA Tour winner Grayson Murray has highlighted how “vulnerable and fragile” top sports stars can be.

Murray withdrew from the Charles Schwab Challenge last week with two holes remaining of Friday’s second round and was found inside a residence in Palm Beach Gardens around 11am on Saturday, according to local police.

In a statement released on Sunday, his parents said Murray had taken his own life.

The 30-year-old had been open about his battles with anxiety and depression and revealed in January that he had sought treatment in the past few years for alcohol abuse, but had been sober for several months.

A statement below from Grayson's parents, Eric and Terry Murray.

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 https://t.co/j0traBx8ia. pic.twitter.com/wPsaYMrWrH

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) May 26, 2024

“It’s incredibly sad, first and foremost, and I think we’re all thinking of Grayson’s family and hoping that they’re doing OK and getting through this incredibly tough period,” McIlroy said ahead of the RBC Canadian Open.

“It’s cliche, but it puts everything in perspective. At the end of the day golf is golf and, yeah, we play it for a living, but it pales in comparison to the things that actually matter in life.

“I’ve had to realise that at times and I’m still sort of working my way through that in terms of not making golf the be-all and end-all for me. I think it slaps you in the face when something like that happens last week.

“It’s incredibly sad and everyone has to remember out here that we go out and we do things that a lot of people can’t, but at the end of the day we’re