Gareth Bale BANNED from playing his beloved hobby golf at the Qatar World Cup

GARETH BALE’S golf days are out of bounds at the World Cup.

Wales boss Robert Page swung by Doha Golf Club during a Qatar recce in June to tee up a round for his squad.

But Page says 18 holes in their downtime is off limits due to the demands the finals will bring for golf nut Bale and his team-mates.

Page said: “We had a round of golf planned. I went to the Doha club, it’s run by a British lad. He said, ‘I’ll book you a time’.

“But it gets dark at four o’clock. We looked at it but there are other functions we might have to do, so we will probably not get the chance to do it.”

When asked if Page had told captain Bale, he laughed: “Yeah. There’s no golf. We’re out there to do a job.

“In the past I may get Gareth, Kieffer Moore or Aaron Ramsey come up to me and say, ‘What’s the plan for tomorrow afternoon? Are there meetings?’

“I’d say, ‘No, there’s no meetings, so if you want nine holes then go and play’.

“But that is when you have a week building up to a double-header. Out there, we won’t have enough time. Every four days there is a game. It’s relentless.”

Wales kick off their World Cup campaign — their first since 1958 — against the USA on November 21, followed by group matches with Iran and England.

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Bale completed his domestic season with Los Angeles FC by winning the MLS Cup last Saturday, so he will be the first on camp when Wales meet up this weekend.

The Dragons are expected to be kept in a strict Covid bubble in Qatar — like the one imposed at last summer’s Euros.

Page said: “We will have a bubble. In Holland in June, we had Wayne Hennessey feeling terrible and Rubin Colwill flew home the night before the game.

“Both tested negative but if it was Covid, then it could have an impact on performance.”