Kiev: Former Chelsea and AC Milan striker Andriy Shevchenko finished 26 over par in his debut on European golf’s second-tier Challenge Tour.
The former football player shot 14-over 86 in Friday’s second round of the Superior Cup in his native Ukraine. The 36-year-old amateur opened with an 84 on Thursday and is 40 shots behind current leader Sihwan Kim of South Korea.
Shevchenko, who plays to a handicap of two, retired from football after playing for Ukraine at the 2012 European Championship. The former European player of the year had taken part in Pro-Am events since then and was invited into the field by the president of the host Superior Golf and Spa Resort in Kharkiv.
Shevchenko is currently 123rd in the 130-player field. Along with two birdies and five pars on Friday, he made a quadruple-bogey, two double-bogeys and eight bogeys.
Yevgeny Kafelnikov, the former French and Australian Open tennis champion, is also in the field. The Russian, who has played events on the top-tier European Tour since retiring from tennis in 2004, is tied for 117th place at 14 over after shooting 80 for the second consecutive day.
The Challenge Tour was established in 1989 as a place for professionals to compete as they try to earn their way to the European Tour.
