Golfer Murray dies at PVCC> Top amateur remembered fondly

J. Garrie Murray, one of Maine’s most avid and respected golfers, died suddenly Saturday at Penobscot Valley Country Club in Orono.

Murray, 42, reportedly suffered a heart attack shortly after playing a morning round of golf at the club.

“He had a massive coronary and died in the locker room,” said Ray Cota Jr. of Orono, a longtime friend and playing partner of Murray. Cota said the cause of death was unconfirmed, but said the circumstances pointed to a coronary.

Cota normally would have been playing with Murray Saturday, but was taking his daughter to the University of Maine-Farmington instead. He said he was shocked to hear about it later.

“He never once complained,” said Cota. “We had a close enough relationship that he would have said something if he wasn’t feeling well.”

Cota said Murray had recently had a physical, which turned out well, and Murray was “very upbeat” afterward.

Murray was a 1972 graduate of Deering High School in Portland and a 1976 grad of Husson College. He was a member of the Husson College Sports Hall of Fame and the University of Maine M Club.

He went to work for Webber Oil Co. as a salesman shortly afterward and rose to be vice president of marketing for Webber Energy Fuels at the time of his death.

Murray was often a top-10 finisher in the Paul Bunyan Amateur Golf Tournament and Maine Amateur during the 1980s, but he was also involved with a lot of charity tournaments.

“He was very active at the club,” said PVCC pro Colin Gillies. “Webber was involved with two or three events a year, and Garrie was always the point man with Webber. He knew a lot of people.”

He made several golf trips to Scotland, Ireland, France, Germany, Monaco, and Hawaii as well as great American clubs such as Augusta National, Pine Valley, and Pebble Beach.

“He had a very strong Scot lineage,” said Cota. “His father [James] was a pro and his brother [Ron] was a pro, and Garrie was the ultimate sportsman as an amateur.”

Bob Girvan II of Kenduskeag competed with and against him for many years.

“He was social minded and talked to everybody,” said Girvan. “He will be hard to replace in anything he did.”

Occasionally his duties involved traveling around the country where he played renowned courses such as Augusta National, Pine Valley, and Pebble Beach.

He didn’t talk about those trips much, said Cota.

“He just enjoyed them for what they were,” said Cota. “As a true sportsman, that’s the way he thought it should be.”

Murray is survived by his wife, Debbie, and son, Camden, of Hampden. Friends may call at the Hampden Funeral Home on Western Ave. 6-8 p.m. Tuesday. Services will be held at 10 a.m. Wednesday at Hampden Congregational Church.