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Andy Murray played in the Pro-Am event of the BMW PGA Championship on Wednesday, September 18. The former Scottish tennis player played in the same group as his compatriot Robert MacIntyre.
Murray's presence at the event was highly touted as one of the top amateur stars in attendance. After his round, Murray dedicated an X post to those who had sent him "constructive criticism" on his golf swing:
"Huge thanks to all the amateur golfers on social media for their constructive criticism of my golf swing. Much appreciated."
Murray retired from professional tennis in August after competing in the 2024 Paris Olympics. He quickly announced that he wanted to focus on golf in order to quickly reach scratch level.
According to the official DP World Tour website, Andy Murray has a handicap of 7. The BMW PGA Championship is the first high-profile event in which he has participated. He shared the course with other stars such as former soccer player Gareth Bale and actor Tom Holland.
Murray has had a 19-year career in professional tennis, winning 46 titles. He has three Grand Slam titles (2012 US Open, 2013 Wimbledon, 2016 Wimbledon) and two Olympic gold medals (London 2012 and Rio 2016) to his name.
Andy Murray - "My expectations currently are pretty low"
Andy Murray held a press conference at the Wentworth Club, home of the BMW Championship, following his participation in the Pro-Am event. His stated focus on golf took center stage as the former tennis player talked about his time spent on the game and other related topics.
Here's some of what he had to say (via ASAP Sport):
"I haven't played loads weekends but during the week, probably a few hours, 2 1/2, three hours probably. I think my expectations currently are pretty low. I'm not expecting to play very well."
However, his expectations are much more ambitious when it comes to achieving his goal of becoming a scratch golfer. Murray mentioned two years as his estimated timeframe to reach that level:
"A couple years probably. I think so. I mean, I'm obviously getting to practise a lot more than the average person. I obviously played a bit when I was younger, and if I can get the right sort of lessons and practise the right things, then yeah, I've got a chance of doing that I think in a couple years."
Murray joins a very long list of former athletes from other sports who have turned to golf in retirement. The group includes Michael Jordan, Tony Romo, Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. Among active players, Steph Curry and Patrick Mahomes stand out.
Among tennis players, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz, among others, have demonstrated both a love of golf and excellent golfing skills.
