Current:Home > NewsNovak Djokovic takes his tennis racket onto the 1st tee of golf’s Ryder Cup All-Star match-InfoLens
Novak Djokovic takes his tennis racket onto the 1st tee of golf’s Ryder Cup All-Star match
View Date:2024-12-23 14:38:48
GUIDONIA MONTECELIO, Italy (AP) — Ever the prankster, Novak Djokovic walked out onto the first tee for the Ryder Cup All-Star match with a tennis racket in his hand and pretended to take a swing at his golf ball.
“It actually would be better for me,” the 24-time Grand Slam champion said Wednesday before going back to his bag and pulling out his driver.
Turns out he knows how to use a golf club, too.
Djokovic drove his tee shot down the right side of the fairway into the first cut, hit his second shot onto the green within 18 feet and left his birdie putt just short of the hole for a gimme and a par 4.
While Djokovic did land in the knee-high rough at one point during the seven-hole exhibition — prompting onlookers to wonder whether he might grab one of the two tennis rackets in his golf bag again — his highlight came on the reachable par-4 16th when he drove the green. He celebrated the shot like Cristiano Ronaldo by leaping and swiveling with outstretched arms.
“Obviously I am much more comfortable hitting a tennis ball with my racket but I don’t think I did too bad today,” Djokovic said.
Before his shots, Djokovic repeatedly went in and out of his set-up position, kind of like the way he often bounces the ball countless times before the toss for his serve in tennis.
Soccer stars Andriy Shevchenko and Gareth Bale also participated in the All-Star event, as well as Formula One driver Carlos Sainz.
Djokovic plans to return to the Marco Simone club outside Rome for the start of the Ryder Cup on Friday.
“I have to experience this unique atmosphere. At 7 a.m. on Friday, I hear it is this incredible noise and something that is quite unique to experience,” he said.
A Serbian, Djokovic has ties to team Europe.
“I’ve been friends with Rory McIlroy for more than 10 years, since when he was engaged to the tennis player Caroline Wozniacki,” Djokovic said. “So I follow him and actually I follow everyone. But he’s already a friend and I’m rooting for him particularly, and obviously Europe.”
___
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
veryGood! (67534)
Related
- Padma Lakshmi, John Boyega, Hunter Schafer star in Pirelli's 2025 calendar: See the photos
- Justin Herbert's record-setting new contract is a 'dream come true' for Chargers QB
- NYC crane collapse: 6 people injured after structure catches fire in Manhattan, officials say
- Irish singer Sinead O'Connor has died at 56
- Oklahoma school district adding anti-harassment policies after nonbinary teen’s death
- Man pleads not guilty in fatal road rage shooting in Washington state
- Trump says he'll still run if convicted and sentenced on documents charges
- Damar Hamlin is at training camp months after cardiac arrest: A full go, Bills coach says
- Keke Palmer Says Ryan Murphy “Ripped” Into Her Over Scream Queens Schedule
- Arizona teen missing for nearly four years shows up safe at Montana police station
Ranking
- Harriet Tubman posthumously named a general in Veterans Day ceremony
- NYC subways join airports, police in using AI surveillance. Privacy experts are worried.
- Facebook parent Meta posts higher profit, revenue for Q2 as advertising rebounds
- Naked woman gets out of car at major Bay Area bridge and starts firing gun, authorities say
- She's a trans actress and 'a warrior.' Now, this 'Emilia Pérez' star could make history.
- GOP nominee says he would renew push for Medicaid work requirement if elected governor in Kentucky
- Mandy Moore says her toddler has a rare skin condition called Gianotti Crosti syndrome
- American woman and her child kidnapped in Haiti, organization says
Recommendation
-
Asian sesame salad sold in Wegmans supermarkets recalled over egg allergy warning
-
As strike continues, working actors describe a job far removed from the glamour of Hollywood
-
Volvo EX30 SUV could be a game changer for electric vehicles
-
How residents are curbing extreme heat in one of the most intense urban heat islands
-
John Krasinski Details Moment He Knew Wife Emily Blunt Was “the One”
-
Actor Kevin Spacey is acquitted in the U.K. on sexual assault charges
-
Big carmakers unite to build a charging network and reassure reluctant EV buyers
-
Carlee Russell charged with making false statements to police in 'hoax' disappearance