Andy Murray may have only just called time on his tennis this summer – but the Scot has already set his sights on a new sporting goal in retirement.
The 37-year-old, who ended Britain’s 77-year wait for a Wimbledon men’s singles champion in 2013, officially retired from professional tennis at the Paris Olympics in August.
The three-time Grand Slam champion is already easing into retirement but revealed his new life is not exactly what he expected it to be like.
‘Since I’ve stopped, I feel really free and have got lots of time to do whatever it is I want,’ Murray told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
‘I can dedicate time to my children and have free time to play golf or go to the gym on my own terms.
‘It is really nice and I didn’t expect that. I was expecting to find retirement hard and be missing tennis a lot and wanting to get back on the tennis court on tour.
‘So far, it has been the complete opposite to what I was thinking.’
However, Murray did admit that he was instantly grateful for the additional family time and said he felt guilty about being away from his wife and two young kids for weeks on end towards the end of his career
‘The thing that I always found difficult in recent years was that there was always a guilt associated with what I was doing,’ he added.
‘If I was going away for a trip of like three to four weeks I would feel guilty leaving my children at home or being away from my wife for a long time with them, so missing the kids I found hard.
Andy Murray's golf swing is… pic.twitter.com/EozsPl33Ku
— HowDidiDo (@HowDidiDo) September 5, 2024
‘But if I was at home with the kids then I was running around and spending a lot of my time on my feet after training.
‘I was then thinking ‘is this going to affect my training or performance the next day, should I have my feet up?’ I found that stuff difficult over the last few years.’
Still needing to satisfy his competitive sporting urge, though, Murray has thrown himself head first into improving his golf game.
Having showcased a clip of his first lesson on Instagram recently, the Scot will make his Celebrity Pro-Am debut at the BMW PGA Championship alongside fellow countryman Robert MacIntyre later this month.
And Murray has already set himself a bold target when it comes to the sport.
‘I want to get to scratch [zero handicap],’ Murray said. ‘Whether that is possible or not I don’t know. I’ve got a lot of time on my hands to practise.’
