The former national rally-driving champion took over the lease of the historic Studholme Hotel, near Waimate, earlier this year.
Originally from Palmerston North, Mr Murray's route to rural South Canterbury publican has been an interesting one.
When his brother Bert moved to Waimate with his fiancee, who was originally from the town, Sam drove one of his cars down for him.
On the way down, Bert had a telephone call from the owner of a local garage, asking if he could do some work for a week or two. He could not, but he suggested Sam could.
One week passed and then another week, Christmas came around and he was asked to come back again and he ended up working at the garage for two and a-half years.
He had been to the Studholme Hotel a few times and liked both the building and the atmosphere of the hotel.
The hotel is owned by New Zealand Dairies, which operates a milk drier plant nearby.
The company undertook a major refurbishment of the hotel in 2007, fitting it out in period style.
The first Studholme Hotel was built in the 1880s but the wooden building burned down in 1915, fortunately without any injuries. It was rebuilt, in brick, in 1916 on the same site, coincidentally on Murray St.
It is located beside the now empty railway platform at Studholme Junction, the point at which the lines deviated from the main trunk for the short trip into Waimate. The last train ran from Waimate to Studholme on March 31, 1966.
The manager of the hotel was retiring and Mr Murray made contact with the chief executive of New Zealand Dairies about leasing the premises. He took over in February.
His background in hospitality was limited to helping the owner of a motel and restaurant complex at weekends for weddings or big events.
He got to see how it worked and that it was not really a lifestyle "because you never get away from the place", but that it was something he would not mind doing later in life, although "I didn't anticipate quite so soon".
He had also done some work at the Waimate Hotel, without realising it was standing him in good stead for his future; and he got to know quite a few of the locals.
He saw the lease as a good opportunity, saying he liked the area.
Studholme, home to the dairy factory and the hotel, was a bit smaller than he was used to, but he enjoyed the South Canterbury region.
It was also a good central area for visitors to base themselves, he said.
They could go whitebaiting at the nearby Waihao Box, or hunting - "there's a lot in the area for a lot of different interests".
Three major annual events in Waimate - Strawberry Fare, the March Hare motorcycle rally and the recently revived Waimate 50 motorsport event - attracted thousands of people to the town and all catered for very different markets.
Mr Murray's brother, Bert, has been a driving force behind the resurrection of the Waimate 50, which is held at Labour Weekend.
Sam Murray's interest in motorsport began when his elder brother became involved - "I used to follow him around" - and the first rally he did was in one of Bert's old cars.
While he enjoyed it at the time, he did not miss rallying, saying it was a drain both mentally and financially and left little time for anything else.
"Like anything you want to be good at, you have to live and breathe it every day," he said.
Giving away his commitment to the sport meant he could do the things he wanted to do.
The hospitality industry was "really tough" and involved long hours. A normal day meant a 6.30am start and he was not usually in bed before midnight.
When a staff member started work at 4pm, Mr Murray moved into the kitchen - "I've given myself a crash course in cooking" - sometimes serving between 40 and 50 meals on a busy Saturday night.
He described the food as a step up from usual pub fare, and he had plans to turn the dining room into more of a restaurant.
Mr Murray's aim was to have the informal atmosphere of a country hotel, where people could come in wearing their work boots and not feel uncomfortable, but with dining, drinks and decor "a step above". Most of all, he wanted to "keep the people happy".
A lot of locals were now returning to the hotel and trucking companies were starting to use the accommodation, while people from as far afield from North Canterbury were using it for a night away.
He planned to be at the hotel for at least the next five to 10 years and there were lots of things he wanted to do while he was there.
"Nothing happens straight away," he said.
