The Wales icon has been honing his skills on the golf course since hanging up his boots
Bale is a huge golf enthusiast
Gareth Bale will pick up his clubs again this weekend as he battles it out with a host of fellow football legends on the golf course.
The former Real Madrid and Tottenham Hotspur star is taking part in the Reignwood Icons of Football golf tournament in Thailand, flying the flag for Wales alongside Ryan Giggs and Aaron Ramsey. The trio are part of a 12-strong team of football icons from around the world, taking on a team of English football stars while being led by pro golfers Thomas Bjorn and Danny Willett respectively.
The two-day event, which begins on Saturday morning, will see 24 icons of the game take to the course in Bangkok, with matches played over 10 holes using a Ryder Cup-style match play.
Bale, Ramsey and Giggs will be joined by the likes of Andriy Shevchenko, Dwight Yorke, Gianfranco Zola and Ruud Gullit in Team World, with the line-up completed by Gabriel Batistuta, David Ginola, Nigel de Jong, Henrik Larsson and John Arne Riise.
Team England, meanwhile, features the likes of John Terry, Theo Walcott, Jimmy Bullard and Teddy Sheringham, with Andy Cole, Robbie Fowler, Joe Hart, Paul Ince, Phil Jagielka, Jermaine Jenas, Phil Jones and Lee Sharpe also taking part.
Bale’s love of golf is well-documented, with the five-time Champions League winner coming under fire for the amount of time he spent on the fairways during his spell in Madrid. His passion for the game even saw a flag reading ‘Wales, golf, Madrid – in that order’ unfurled as he celebrated Wales’ qualification for Euro 2020 with his team-mates.
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After hanging up his boots in January 2023, the 36-year-old has spent even more time honing his skills on the course and, as a result, he has managed to cut his handicap further from the “three or four” mark he held just a couple of years ago.
In the list of official handicaps for Saturday’s tournament, Bale is listed as playing off a scratch handicap – zero – meaning he can typically play to the course rating on any golf course.
While he has previously insisted he does not have what it takes to turn professional, the Welshman is one of the most accomplished golfers among his celebrity peers and is certainly the player all eyes will be on this weekend.
His closest rival at the Reignwood Icons of Football tournament is former Wigan and Fulham midfielder Bullard, who also plays off a scratch handicap.
Bale and Bullard are closely followed by the likes of former Ballon D’or winner Shevchenko and ex-Manchester United stars Yorke and Sharpe, who all play off a handicap of one.
Both Giggs and Ramsey find themselves further down the list, playing off handicaps of seven and ten respectively.
How Gareth Bale’s golf handicap compares to other football stars:
Gareth Bale, Jimmy Bullard – 0
Andriy Shevchenko, Dwight Yorke, Lee Sharpe – 1
Gabriel Batistuta – 2
Gianfranco Zola, Teddy Sheringham, John Terry, Jermaine Jenas – 4
Robbie Fowler, Paul Ince, Phil Jagielka – 6
Ryan Giggs – 7
John Arne Riise, David Ginola, Ruud Gullit, Nigel de Jong – 8
Phil Jones, Theo Walcott – 9
Aaron Ramsey, Henrik Larsson, Andy Cole – 10
Joe Hart – 12
