Taylor Fritz, Casper Ruud hone grass-court skills on golf course with Luke Donald

ZIPRECRUITER PLAYER RESUME: Casper Ruud

Novak Djokovic once hilariously took a golf club from his racquet bag at Wimbledon, and Casper Ruud, who has joked that “grass is for golfers” may be voted most likely to do the same alongside Taylor Fritz after the two added a little Ryder Cup flair to their grass-court preparation.

Representing Team Europe and Team USA, respectively, Ruud and Fritz took to the Marco Simone Golf & Country Club in Rome to get some tips from PGA pro Luke Donald, who has done some cross-training of his own to win five titles in his golfing career.

“I’ve done some tennis drills to help with my golf swing,” says Donald as he helps to adjust Ruud’s grip.

A frequent visitor to the Rafael Nadal Academy, Ruud admits his tennis idol and two-time Wimbledon champion is as effective on the green as he can be on the grass.

“I played with Rafa twice and he shot under par both times,” said Ruud, who is fresh off a third Grand Slam final last month at Roland Garros.

“If he watches this, I’m going to take shit from him because his swing is awful but he makes it work somehow,” adds the Norwegian, who describes Nadal’s pre-serving rituals carrying onto the golf course.

While Ruud is looking to make a breakthrough run at his least successful Slam, Fritz came close to a career-best run at Wimbledon last year, pushing Nadal to five sets in the quarterfinals.

“I thought I had a good chance and I was playing well,” Fritz recalled. “It was kind of a heartbreaker, losing that one, but it was incredible walking out [on Centre Court] and having that opportunity to play.”

After the lesson, Ruud and Fritz go head-to-head in a three-hole challenge. Who emerges victorious? Check out the full video to find out.