American former tennis pro Mardy Fish will trade the racquet for the driver this weekend, as he becomes the first-ever man to play on both the PGA and ATP tours.
The 40-year-old has received a sponsor’s exemption to take to the course at the 3M Open in Minneapolis, which begins on Thursday.
“No one’s ever played an ATP and PGA Tour event before,” Fish told Tennis.com.
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“It’s special that it’s here as well; I was born just down the road. This is certainly a special trip.”
Fish had excelled in celebrity events in recent years, and was once called “the best non-professional golfer I have ever seen play” by the legendary Jack Nicklaus.
“We played nine holes and he drove the ball on every single hole in the middle of the fairway, further than I have seen anybody hit it who is not a professional,” Nicklaus said in a 2018 interview.
“I said, ‘Mardy, what are you doing? You have got a talent and you are young enough to take advantage of it. You need to go play golf.'”
Fish’s most-recent outing was at the celebrity American Century Championship, where he finished in sixth place.
Former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo won the event after a play-off, beating former MLB pitcher Mark Mulder and Dallas Stars NHL forward Joe Pavelski.
Fish won that event in 2020, jumping into Lake Tahoe in celebration.
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