Bale played 36 holes two days before being listed injured

Gareth Bale played 36 holes (two complete rounds) of golf during his trip to the Valderrama Open in San Roque, Cádiz at the weekend. The Welshman, a huge golf fan, attended the event on the final day, and made the most of the trip to play a few holes himself at the Finca Cortesín and La Reserva, according to specialist website Ten Golf.

So it came as quite a surprise when Zinedine Zidane confirmed on Tuesday that Bale is not in the list for tomorrow's league meeting with Villarreal; the coach announcing that Bale has suffered "a sprain". When the coach was questioned as to whether Bale had picked up the injury while playing golfat the weekend, he replied: “I don't think so”.

However, according to some outlets, including Ten Golf, Gareth Bale played 36 holes during his time at the Valderrama Open. The player uploaded a photograph of himself with Sergio García on Instagram, without hiding his presence in the last four holes of the tournament.

García, who was topping the leader board at that moment, invited Bale to accompany him on the final four holes, which the Madrid player accepted, vaulting over the security fence to complete the last stretch of the course on foot.