'Kinda Wanted To Hit A Full 60 Off The Grass Court' - Golfing Stars Visit Wimbledon Tennis Championships

Several star names from the world of pro golf have attended Wimbledon this year to watch the third tennis Major of the season

Three images of golf stars - (left) Ludvig Aberg and girlfriend Olivia Peet, Charley Hull (centre), and Justin Rose with wife Kate all at Wimbledon 2024
(Image credit: Ludvig Aberg Instagram/Charley Hull Instagram/Justin Rose X)

A host of famous golfing faces have attended the world-famous Wimbledon tennis championships this year ahead of what is a busy upcoming period in their own sport.

The Scottish Open, the Evian Championship, the Open Championship, and the AIG Women's Open Championship are all taking place over the coming days and weeks, with the many of the best players hoping to fulfil their own Major ambitions.

But before attention switched back to swinging a club, several stars of golf were on Centre Court to hear the 'whoosh' and 'thwack' of tennis racket on ball at one of the most iconic sporting venues anywhere on the planet.

Justin Rose and his wife Kate were in the Royal Box on day three of Wimbledon to watch Daniil Medvedev defeat Alexandre Muller, Emma Navarro see off Naomi Osaka, and Jannik Sinner edge past Matteo Berrettini in a thrilling battle of two Italian powerhouses.

Rose's day out came a day after he had played 36 holes and made it through to the Open at Royal Troon via final qualifying. On X, the Englishman said: "One of my favourite days of the year @Wimbledon. My body is still recovering from those 36 holes yesterday!! Thank you again for all the support."

One man who did not require qualifying to book his tee time at Royal Troon was Rose's Ryder Cup teammate, Ludvig Aberg. The World No.4 was on Centre Court with his girlfriend Olivia - who played college tennis at Texas Tech between 2018 and 2023 - on Sunday to watch defending Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz win in four sets against Ugo Humbert of France and Great Britain's Emma Radacanu lose to New Zealand's Lulu Sun.

As with any golfer who sees a stretch of perfectly-manicured grass, Aberg admitted he was desperate to hit some kind of shot with a golf club. In his own Instagram post, Aberg said: "Me and @olivia_jorgipeet at @wimbledon. Kinda wanted to hit a full 60 off the grass court. Thank you @rolex!"

Aberg was in attendance at Wimbledon on a day where several high-profile names from across a variety of sports were inside the Royal Box on Centre Court.

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola, Indian cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar, Britain's most successful male and female Olympians of all time Sir Jason Kenny and his wife Dame Laura Kenny (cycling), England's European Championship-winning captain Leah Williamson, and Britain's most successful sailor of all time Sir Ben Ainslie joined World No.8 Charley Hull in the seats reserved for VIPs.

Hull posted on Instagram simply to say: "Loving the tennis" underneath a photo of her posing in front of Centre Court.

The Englishwoman was not the only Solheim Cup star enjoying the venue which is synonymous with strawberries and cream, however, with Anna Nordqvist, Emily Kristine Pedersen, and Rose Zhang all pictured at The Championships in south-west London.

Ladies European Tour golfer Gemma Dryburgh shared a picture to social media of her watching some of the tennis on an outside court.

On Monday, a handful more of Team Europe's Ryder Cup heroes headed over to Wimbledon to watch a few matches prior to returning north for the Scottish Open. Captain Luke Donald and wife Diane attended along with Tommy Fleetwood, Shane Lowry, Tyrrell Hatton, and Matt Fitzpatrick.

Images of the group - shared by the PGA Tour - surfaced hours after a photo of them at dinner in London with their partners and Rory McIlroy plus Nicolai Hojgaard.

Many of the aforementioned names will return to more familiar territory this week, with the Evian Championship and the Scottish Open on the agenda.

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Jonny Leighfield
Staff Writer

Jonny Leighfield is our Staff News Writer who joined Golf Monthly just in time for the 2023 Solheim Cup and Ryder Cup. He graduated from the University of Brighton with a degree in Sport Journalism in 2017 and spent almost five years as the sole sports reporter at his local newspaper. During his time with Golf Monthly, Jonny has interviewed several stars of the game, including Robert MacIntyre, Ian Poulter, and Lee Westwood. An improving golfer himself, Jonny enjoys learning as much about the game as he can and is hoping to reach his Handicap goal of 18 at some stage. He attended both the 150th and 151st Open Championships and dreams of attending The Masters one day.