Gareth Bale's opening round at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship took an unexpected turn when his drive at the 17th hole at St Andrews landed in the beer garden of The Jigger pub, startling drinkers and nearly ending up in someone's drink.
The Wales football legend, who has a scratch handicap, was competing in the annual Pro-Am event, which pairs professional golfers with amateur players and celebrities. Bale and his partner Marcus Armitage finished the opening round on -5, leaving them well down the leaderboard.
Shot veers into pub garden
Disaster struck when the former Real Madrid and Tottenham Hotspur star teed off at the penultimate hole. His drive veered off course and landed on top of a tented roof in the beer garden of The Jigger pub, which overlooks the 17th Road Hole. The beer garden was full of punters, and the ball rolled off the tent, bounced off a table, and landed on the grass. Nobody was hurt, but pub-goers reacted in surprise as they realised how close they came to being hit.
"This is the tee at 17 for Gareth Bale," said the DP World Tour commentator. "The shot they all look forward to, albeit with a bit of trepidation." As the ball landed in the pub, they added: "Ohh, it's in someone's pint!"
Celebrity field at the championship
Bale is not the only ex-footballer taking part in this year's competition. Former Liverpool, Newcastle United and Brighton star James Milner is among the high-fliers after he and partner Sean Crocker finished the opening round on -10. Netherlands legend Ruud Gullit is paired with Charles Howell III.
Several England cricket heroes, including Lord Ian Botham, Kevin Pietersen, Michael Vaughan and Allan Lamb, are also involved. Representatives from other sports include Olympic legend Sir Steve Redgrave, former All Blacks captain Sean Fitzpatrick and horse racing icon AP McCoy.
Music and entertainment stars
Former Boyzone singer Ronan Keating, Genesis founder Mike Rutherford and Linkin Park guitarist Dave Farrell are representing the world of music, as is Huey Lewis, who played in the very first edition of the competition in 2001. Piers Morgan is paired with Matthew Jordan, while Dragons Den star Peter Jones is taking part alongside professional partner James Morrison.
Legendary actor Bill Murray was also due to take part again but had to pull out due to "unforeseen scheduling commitments".
