Ruud’s quest for Olympic golf tickets leads to Mardy Fish challenge

Casper Ruud made a curious request to the Olympic Games organization after his quarterfinal defeat. The Norwegian had a good campaign in the tournament but was surprised by Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime. Despite his elimination, Ruud's stay in Paris did not end there.

The 3-time Grand Slam runner-up was close to securing a semifinal spot. Auger-Aliassime took the first set, while Ruud won the second set 7-6(8), forcing a tiebreak. Unfortunately for the Norwegian, he couldn't complete the comeback and was eliminated 6-3 in the third set.

Despite the elimination, Ruud wanted to take advantage of his stay in Paris to attend the Olympic golf event. Although athletes have priority for event tickets, Ruud had difficulty finding tickets and made a request to the organization on social media: "Hey @Olympics would it be possible to have 3 tickets for the golf event tomorrow? The athletes website for ticketing is down. Thank you in advance! #Paris2024."

One of Ruud's great passions outside the tennis courts is golf. The Norwegian regularly practices this sport and even has a separate Instagram account to share clips of him showcasing his skills.

After his social media post, the Olympic organization contacted Ruud to facilitate access to tickets for the golf event: "All sorted let’s gooooo," he posted on X a few hours later.

Not only did the Paris 2024 chiefs respond to Ruud's request, but a former silver medalist took the opportunity to challenge Ruud. The silver medalist in singles from Athens 2004, Mardy Fish, responded to Ruud's tweet, commenting that he would give him a handicap. Fish is known for his talent in golf, where he has won several tournaments, including the American Century Championships in 2020 and 2024.

"Casper, come play with me. I’ll give ya 7 a side," commented the American. "You’ll give me 7 strokes??" replied Ruud. "7 a side," emphasized Fish.

A fan commented, "14 strokes. This needs to be on YouTube," as Fish added in the X thread, "Ok 14 may be a tick much. How bout straight up?"