Gareth Bale was forced to overcome a furry little imposter during his second round at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship on Friday.

The Wales football legend is competing in the Pro-Am portion of the DP World Tour event alongside professional golfer Dan Brown.

Bale was among the high-profile amateurs playing on the DP World Tour this weekGetty

Superstars such as Rory McIlroy and Brooks Koepka rotate around three iconic Scottish courses – St Andrews, Carnoustie and Kingsbarn – playing alongside famous amateurs such a Bale, James Anderson and Piers Morgan.

The pros score their own ball for the individual competition, while also competing in a team event alongside their amateur partner.

Bale, known for his love of golf – much to the chagrin of Real Madrid fans – found himself 18th in the team competition after a solid opening two days, even though his Friday round at Carnoustie was briefly hijacked by a dog.

Scotland’s most famous links courses are all about navigating the natural conditions of the land – but one canine took that a little too far.

A crowd video, shared on social media, showed Bale hitting an impressive chip onto the 16th green at Carnoustie, before the pet mistook his shot for a game of fetch.

Onlookers can be heard gasping as the dog runs onto the green, picks up the ball with its mouth, and runs it back to the former Tottenham Hotspur and Real Madrid star.

Luckily for Bale, the rules of golf have this one covered – and he was able to simply return the ball to its original spot.

According to Rule 9.6 in the USGA’s handbook: “If it is known or virtually certain that an outside influence (including another player in stroke play or another ball) lifted or moved a player’s ball at rest, there is no penalty, and the ball must be replaced on its original spot (which if not known must be estimated).”

Bale and Brown recovered from the amusing interlude to finish Friday on a combined 19-under-par.

Their third round takes place at Kingsbarn, alongside pro golfer Dan Huizing and Netherlands football icon Ruud Gullit.

Bale has been gracing Scotland’s most iconic courses this weekGetty

The top 20 teams will make the cut for the final round at St Andrews’ famous Old Course on Sunday.

Bale has made a number of appearances at high-profile Pro-Am events since hanging up his boots at the age of 33 in January 2023.

One month after retirement, he was playing in the Pebble Beach Pro-Am, which is essentially the PGA Tour‘s version of the Alfred Dunhill Links.

He has also featured alongside McIlroy at the BMW PGA Championship Pro-Am at Wentworth on multiple occasions.

Many joked that Bale was quitting football to prioritise golf after he developed an unfortunate reputation in Madrid.

He infamously held up a sign that read ‘Wales, Golf, Madrid. In that order’, while goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois revealed the Los Blancos squad had collectively nicknamed him ‘The Golfer’.

Since retiring, Bale’s handicap has dropped to 0.5, putting him on the brink of becoming a scratch golfer.

To put that into context, a mere one per cent of all golfers in the world are at that elite level.

However, the Welshman has previously ruled out ever turning professional.

“No, absolutely not,” he said in 2023. “All I can see is everything saying give up.

“I think I’ll give up before I start! Even if you get to a scratch, obviously it is great.

“[But] these guys are +7 and +8, it’s a different level. You really appreciate what they’re able to do when you just stand and watch them play week in and week out.”