FOR golfers who followed the football World Cup in Qatar, former England international Matt Le Tissier will be a familiar name and someone readers have more than likely seen playing golf in the celebrity pro-ams – particularly on the European Tour.
Matt represented England eight times and is the second highest scorer of goals (161) in 443 appearances for his beloved Southampton Football Club in the English Premier League.
Matt was one of the greatest penalty shooters of all time. In his career he had 48 shots from the 12-yard spot and he converted 47 of them. But I bet that didn’t mean much as he watched England’s captain Harry Kane miss from the penalty spot in the quarter-final against France. Kane’s shot went so far over the cross bar it was akin to hitting it OB with a seven-iron – or missing a two-footer to get in a playoff.
As the football panellist for Sky Sports, Matt Le Tissier takes a keen interest in all sports, but he has a true love of golf and has the ambition to get to a scratch handicap.
I tuned in to Matt Le Tissier on Sky Sports, and more recently on his brilliant Gettr video channel, where he has been interviewing all sorts of interesting people.
More recently, I listened in to his deep discussion with Aussie sporting royalty Pat Cash.
Matt, did you watch the World Cup in Qatar or were you too sad after England was knocked out by France in the quarter-finals?
I watched all the Wales and England games and both the semi-finals and final but missed a lot of the other group games.
You obviously played a lot of football in your life. Were many of the professional footballers also into golf or were you a bit of an anomaly?
Back in my day we had quite a few lads who played golf and some of my team-mates were as keen on golf as I was. Neil Ruddock, Paul Telfer, Richard Hall and Alan Shearer come to mind.
Did you warm to golf as a kid growing up?
I played my first proper round when I was 17 so I didn’t really play as a kid apart from pitch-’n-putt occasionally on a very short course close to my home in Guernsey. Watching the Masters was what really got me interested.
What’s been your lowest handicap?
My lowest is 0.8. I am currently off 1.7 and motivated to get to the magical scratch number in 2023.
How often do you play?
I play 2 or 3 times a week normally. Five days a week would be ideal.
Best golfers you have had pleasure of sharing a round with?
Tommy Fleetwood and Martin Kaymer.
Through your work with Sky Sports, and as a former gun of English footballer, you get to play a bunch of celebrity pro-ams in Europe. Are there many celebrity golfers in the UK that can actually play as well as you?
Yes there are quite a few celebs with lower handicaps than mine. Tim Henman (tennis) is a good golfer and footballers John Terry, Harry Kane (England captain) and Paul Telfer are all pretty handy on the links, as is TV presenter Dan Walker.
Did you ever get to play golf with Australian legend Shane Warne?
Yes, I played with Shane many years ago with guys who paid in an auction to play with us. I think we won. An interesting fact is Shane bought my house in 2005.
Shane Warne loved his golf as much as anyone. What can you tell us about his style of play?
Shane’s style of play was reminiscent of mine. Actually, we both were not great technically but had a natural timing and coordination and a hint of perfectionism with an iron-will to win.
Have you been to Australia and, if so or if not, which courses would you love to play?
I’ve been to Sydney and Perth. I didn’t play in Sydney, but I caddied in the Heineken Classic at Lake Karrinyup for Richard Bland in 2003 and played in the pro-am with Craig Parry. I would love to play Royal Melbourne some day and some of the other great courses.
When at the peak of your football career, did you have much interaction with Australian players and what can you tell us them in general?
Aussie Robbie Slater was a teammate of mine for a little while, but I’ve never really taken that much notice of the domestic league in Australia.
What can you tell us about Englishman Matt Fitzpatrick and his incredible US Open victory in 2022? Have you played with him and do you think he will go on to win The Open?
I haven’t played with Matt Fitzpatrick, but thought his victory was outstanding and he’s definitely got the game and temperament to win The Open.
Any aspirations to caddie at the US Masters and what is your dream course you would love to play?
My caddying days are behind me, I think, but I still dream of playing Pebble Beach.
You occasionally play golf with Richard Bland, who clearly had a brilliant year in 2022. Can you describe just how much better these players are than what we might think? I remember you saying he shot 7-under in a friendly match recently.
To give you an idea of the difference between me off a 1.7 handicap and Blandy; he gives me eight shots around our local course and can still beat me, but not always.
What would be the strength of your game?
I normally keep it relatively straight off the tee and my sportsman’s mentality of not liking to lose.
As a professional sports person you obviously understand the physical and mental side of golf. Do you have any simple advice to help the average golfer who plays off 18?
Simple advice for an 18 handicapper would be to know your limitations and practice good course management. Most importantly, don’t beat yourself up over poor shots.
Dream pairing?
It would be at Augusta (again) with Ernie Els (my first golfing hero), Richard Bland and Tiger Woods.
FOOTNOTE: Andrew Crockett can be contacted at
andrew@beyondthegreen.org
