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Rahm: Bale 'has no business being that good' at golf

Gareth Bale Wales Gareth Bale - The Canadian Press
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Gareth Bale already has one supporter of his nascent golf career in former World No. 1 Jon Rahm.

The 28-year-old Spaniard says he's shocked by how good the former Real Madrid star is on the course.

"I told Gareth, 'You can't be so good at professional football and golf at the same time, it just doesn't seem fair'," Rahm said after playing alongside the 33-year-old former Wales captain at the pro-am ahead of this week's Farmers Insurance Open. "Can't be dedicated to one thing and have this much talent for golf, it's not fair in the slightest."

Bale was announced earlier this week as being a competitor at next month's Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

Rahm said Bale wasn't looking for any tips or tricks in the nine holes they played together at Torrey Pines in San Diego because he doesn't need them.

"He didn't ask for anything, nor should he be asking, he's already good enough," Rahm said. "He has no business being that good when he's a professional football player. When he can actually practice more, he's going to get a lot better. He got two strokes in the pro-am, which I think is already wrong. He should be giving strokes back to the rest of the amateurs because he is a very, very good player."

Bale announced his retirement from football earlier this month, only weeks after captaining the Dragons to their first World Cup appearance since 1958. A product of the Southampton academy, Bale played for 18 professional seasons with Saints, Tottenham Hotspur, Real Madrid and Los Angeles FC.

With Los Blancos, Bale won three La Liga titles, a pair of Copas del Rey and five Champions League crowns. He concluded his club career in November by helping LAFC win its first ever MLS Cup.