Jay Green - the former caddie of Grayson Murray - is teaming up with one-time PGA Tour winner Jason Gore on his PGA Tour champions debut at the American Family Insurance Championship this week in the search for a return to "normalcy."
The whole golfing sphere was rocked by the news that Murray had committed suicide on May 25, with tributes arriving from all corners as golfers, officials, and fans alike all tried to come to terms with the shocking news.
It was particularly tough for friend and caddie of around six months, Green, too - with the pair having only celebrated victory at the Sony Open in January of this year and Murray going on to talk about his gradual recovery from alcohol issues and depression afterwards.
Green later revealed that Murray presented him with the exact Rolex watch that he'd longed for at Pebble Beach as a reward for their success - an item that he will treasure forever.
In an attempt to begin his own healing journey, the 28-year-old agreed to caddie for Gore this week, having only been asked on Monday at the third of Murray's three memorial services.
Speaking to Korn Ferry Tour media staff, Gore - who was alongside Retief Goosen in the final group of the 2005 US Open - said: "I just felt like it was the right thing to do; it felt right to have Jay here. We’ll both be nervous, for me just because it’s been a long time, and he’s just a young kid who had something awful happen. It’ll be good for both of us.
“Hopefully we’ll keep it all in perspective,” he continued, “and it’ll be a good healing process for him. It’s been an emotional two days. I’m spent.”
Green agreed, adding: “It’s only been a couple days, but it feels like a month. We’ve both said this is exactly what we need, just some normalcy.”
Gore - the winner of a record seven Korn Ferry Tour titles and the 2005 84 Lumber Classic champion on the PGA Tour - only turned 50 last month and was not due to make his PGA Tour Champions debut this week.
The man who now serves as Chief Player Officer on the PGA Tour was informed with nine minutes before the cut-off point on Monday that there was an open spot due to Scott Verplank's withdrawal and Gore could have a sponsor's exemption if he'd like it.
One quick phone call to his wife later, and Gore was in. With his clubs already in the trunk, all he had to do was sort equipment, clothes, and - crucially - a caddie. Hoping he could take Green's mind off the past few weeks for a little while and solve his own search for a looper, Gore posed the question.
Jason Gore met Jay Green, Grayson Murray’s caddie, on Monday at Murray's memorial service at Muirfield Village.As a way of offering a "return to normalcy", Gore invited Green to caddie for him in his upcoming Champions Tour debut.Green accepted and said, “That’s exactly what… pic.twitter.com/6A7YTaIRbYJune 6, 2024
He said: “I kind of knew him but not really. We really just met Monday, and I was like, I want this guy to loop for me. I texted him: ‘How many clothes did you bring?’ He said he’d brought a few outfits. I was like, ‘Do you want to caddie on the Champions Tour this week?’
“He’s like, ‘For who?’ ‘For me, dude! I just got a sponsor exemption!’ Getting back to normalcy will be good for him. I’ll hit a bad shot and it’s just golf, man.”
According to the Korn Ferry Tour, married Green - who lives in Jacksonville, Florida - was intending to go back to his native Alma, Michigan in order to properly grieve and work out where to go from there but quickly changed his mind for this opportunity.
“I think that’s what Grayson would want, what his family would want,” Green said. “I don’t know Jason’s game. I know he’s long. He and I have talked about our motto, which is zero expectations.
"He’s been practicing, getting ready for the Senior Open. It’s not like he hasn’t played in five years. I saw some good things today while we were practicing.”
