Rafael Nadal made an unusual early exit at this year's Roland Garros, but he made sure he lifted a trophy during his recent return to the golf course.
Nadal is the most decorated champion in French Open history, having won the tournament a record 14 times. He also owns a 112-4 win-loss record at the tournament. At his peak, he was virtually unbeatable at the clay-court major.
But the past two years have been very tough for his body as he battled foot and then two hip injuries. He didn't compete at last year's French Open as he decided to undergo surgery to repair the torn flexor muscles in the hip.
This year, Nadal came into Roland Garros with self-doubts and a well-below-peak physical level. He suffered a severe hip injury while competing at his comeback tournament in Brisbane in January and missed the next three months recovering.
On his return to the match court, he didn't particularly have a productive buildup on the clay swing and eventually lost in the opening match to Alexander Zverev in Paris.
However, he quickly swapped his racket for the golf stick, and he did pretty well with it because he won a tournament in his hometown, Mallorca. Nadal is an avid golf fan and has previously stated that it is the only sport besides tennis that keeps him match-fit.
"A special tournament, a different tournament.... Simply the @golfsonservera 2024 Nations Cup . A magical day full of golf honouring the 16 nationalities of our partners! The course in perfect condition made @rafaelnadal win the 2024 title for Spain. A great day of golf in paradise."
Nadal posed with the winner's trophy in a photo that has since been shared by the tournament's official social media page. It's not the first time that the legendary Spaniard has outlasted the rest of the field on the golf course, but he recently captured the Balearic Mid-Amateur men's championships in February this year.
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