Andy Murray is lining up a crack at regional qualifying for The Open – but has zero expectation of playing his way to the oldest major in golf.
The former Wimbledon champion has worked his handicap down from seven to two in the space of 12 months and on Wednesday he eagled the 18th hole of the Wentworth pro-am prior to the BMW PGA Championship.
‘I am hoping that in a couple of years time that I will be at a level where I won’t totally disgrace myself but you never know,’ he said of plans to take on one of the regional qualifying tournaments that feed into The Open.
‘I don’t have ambitions of playing in the Open but I want to try and play the regional qualifying at some stage. A couple of my friends have done it. It would be a fun thing to do.
‘If you got to the level to do that, I would do it but I certainly don’t think I would have any chance of qualifying for the Open. I am fully aware how good the players who play in those events are and how good the pros are in comparison to amateurs. Even the guys who play off plus-two or plus-three are miles off the tour pros.’
Murray has ruled out a quick return to tennis coaching after parting with Novak Djokovic in May.
Former tennis star Andy Murray is trying to master another sport in retirement – golf
The Scotsman has worked his handicap from seven to two in just 12 months and is eyeing a spot in The Open qualifying
Murray has ruled out a quick return to tennis coaching after parting with Novak Djokovic in May
He said: ‘Obviously with Novak I did it for a period and it was great experience and it was a unique opportunity to do it but there are certain things about the job. If you want to do it well, you need to spend time on the road.
‘If it is a British player that is London-based, it becomes easier because the off weeks, at least you are close to home. But if it is a player who lives elsewhere, it means a lot of time away from the family and I have no interest in doing that just now because I don’t want to be away from them.
‘I think in in the future I would probably do it again – it is not like I hated it so much that I wouldn’t do it. There were bits of it that I liked but for now I just don’t want to be on the road and I don’t want to do it.’
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Andy Murray reveals plans for tilt at qualifying for The Open as former British No 1 embraces life after tennis – and shares update on his coaching future after Novak Djokovic split