Andy Murray has never made his love of golf a secret. Now he wants to make a living from it…
When Sir Andy Murray retired from a tennis career that included three grand slams, two Olympic gold medals, and becoming World No.1 in an era that featured the three best players to ever pick up a racket, he might have been forgiven for wanting a bit of time away from competitive sport.
Indeed, in post-retirement interviews, the Scot noted that he was most looking forward to “being a good husband and dad” to his wife, Kim, and their four children. But he is also one of the finest athletes – if not the finest – these islands have ever produced, so there was always going to be that itch to scratch.
Murray found it in our beautiful game.
In an interview with Gentleman’s Journal before his playing days were over, Murray said his new “sporting goal” was to “try and become a scratch golfer”.
It seems like he is taking that seriously, too. He played in last year’s star-studded BMW PGA Championship pro-am with a handicap of seven. Thirteen months later, he teed up at the Dunhill Links off two.
He also noted, somewhat surprisingly, that he would like to become a caddie for a tour player.
“I would find that exciting,” he explained. “To be up close and personal to top golfers and to learn about another sport like that. Maybe there’s some crossover between the two sports from the mental side and things, and so you might be able to help a golfer.”
Now, in a recent episode of The Romesh Ranganathan Show, Murray reiterated that desire – and even went as far to say who his dream boss would be.
“I love golf, and if you love that sport I think it would be a great job,” the 38-year-old told Ranganathan.
“If you were working with a top golfer and being there when they are having a great moment on the course and feeling like you can help a little bit with decisions, I think it would be a brilliant job.
“The dream pro to caddie for would be Robert MacIntyre.
“That’s like the dream, to imagine carrying Robert MacIntyre’s bag when he wins The Open or something like that. That would be the dream job.”
Two-time PGA Tour winner and Ryder Cup star MacIntyre has been through a number of caddies in his career to date. His dad, Dougie, was on the bag when he won his first title at the Canadian Open in 2024, but he seems to be settled now with Englishman Mike Burrows, who helped him realise his dream of winning the Scottish Open en route to a career-best seventh in the world rankings.
When the comedian asked Murray if he is worried that there would be too much focus on him, he replied: “Initially, potentially, but I don’t think long-term.
“I think, as with anything new, people would probably get quite excited about that, but after a while it just becomes the norm.”
As for his next goal in terms of his own game, Murray plans on entering Regional Qualifying for golf’s oldest major at some point.
“A couple of my friends have done it,” he said in a recent interview, “and it would just be a fun thing to do if you got to the level where you’re able to do it.
“But I certainly don’t think I would have any chance of qualifying for The Open. I’m fully aware of how good the players that play in those events are and how good the pros are in comparison to amateurs. Even guys that play off plus-two or plus-three are miles off what these guys are.
“In a couple of years’ time, I’m hoping I’ll be at a level where I won’t totally disgrace myself, but you never know.”
Murray’s rivals during his pomp – Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic – are all also keen golfers. Nadal regularly competes in low-level tour events in his homeland of Spain, while Djokovic teed up in the Ryder Cup All-Star Match at Bethpage.
