The five-time Champions League winner has made no secret of his love for all things golf but he still believes🏀 he is far away from turning professional despite praise from Rory McIlroy
Former Real Madrid superstar Gareth Bale's love for golf🏀 is well-documented but it appears any suggestion he might turn professional is wide of the mark for now.
With the Welsman's🏀 glittering football career now over, he has been a regular on the golf course as he moves into a different🏀 chapter in his life. And he proved his talents are not limited to the pitch as he took part in🏀 the BMW PGA Celebrity Pro-Am. Arriving at Wentworth with an handicap of 0.5 - showing he has been working on🏀 his swing - Bale caught the eye as he was joined by household names such as Rory McIlroy, Jermaine Jenas🏀 and JP McManus.
In fact, four-time major champion McIlroy seemed very impressed with the former Tottenham winger, who was proving very🏀 adept at the DP World Tour event. In his dulcet Northern Irish tones, he was heard praising the retired footballer🏀 for his efforts after his opening tee-shot.
Seemingly pleasantly surprised by the former Wales talisman's connection, he said: "Good strike! That's🏀 OK there". In a memorable moment, the world-famous pair then shared an approving smile before Bale's former Spurs teammate Jenas🏀 took to the tee.
Despite his excellent showing in front of golfing royalty, it does appears that the five-time Champions League🏀 victor still feels he has a lot to learn when it comes to his second love. In an interview with🏀 Uproxx, the 34-year-old explained that he still feels far off professional standard.
He explained: "There’s a big difference, don’t get me🏀 wrong. But they really just think their way around the course, they don’t make those silly mistakes, when they hit🏀 a bad shot, they hit a bad shot into the correct spot, they just get up and down from everywhere.
Image:🏀 Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
"The focus they have, you can see it in their eyes, they’re just so focused🏀 with every shot. I feel like, for example, with me, an amateur, I can easily hit a couple of good🏀 shots and think I’m better than I am, and then come crumbling back down to earth, and then I have🏀 to grind again.
Showing the kind of relentless spirit that saw Bale rise from the youth ranks at Southampton to become🏀 one of the best players in the world, he still is backing himself to improve. With more time on his🏀 hands after hanging up his boots, it is clear that he is willing to put the hours in to get🏀 better.
He added: "So, just seeing, I guess, the practice they put in, obviously they put themselves in position where they’re🏀 gonna keep playing while not making too many mistakes. Something now that I would love to do more that I🏀 have the time is to practice and try and get better and try to achieve a better handicap."
