Novak Djokovic praises tennis rival Carlos Alcaraz’s golf game

Some guys just have it all. Tennis star Carlos Alcaraz seems to be one of those guys.

The 22-year-old Spanish superstar is the top-ranked player in the world and has already won seven Grand Slam titles in his young career. He’s also no slouch on the golf course, according to one of his biggest tennis rivals, 24-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic.

In an interview with the Tennis Channel on Monday, Djokovic revealed that he had recently enjoyed a day on the links with Alcaraz and fellow tennis star Alexander Zverev, who won Olympic gold for Germany in 2020.

“It was my first time playing with these guys,” Djokovic said. “It was fun. It was a lot of laughter, a lot of mind games. But it was great.”

Djokovic played golf with Zverev and Alcaraz yesterday 😆🏌️‍♂️#TennisParadisepic.twitter.com/PmjdfmW5c4

— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) March 9, 2026

Djokovic was asked how the trio played. “I’m okay, but I’m behind these guys,” he said. “I don’t play [golf] as much as I used to and practice makes perfect. That’s my excuse. But those guys are pretty good.”

Just how good is Alcaraz?

“I mean, I show up and on the first hole, the guy rips a 300-yard drive,” Djokovic said with a laugh. “It’s a par 5 and he’s going for his eagle and I’m like, ‘Is there anything you’re not good at, man? Like, what’s going on here?'”

The swing of two-time Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz 🎾🇪🇸#OpenEspanapic.twitter.com/1qrpVnm6to

— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) October 8, 2025

This isn’t the first we’ve heard of Alcaraz being quite the stick. In September, he played a round with fellow Spaniard Sergio Garica and a month later, found himself on the course with another Spanish golf star, Jon Rahm, during a pro-am event at the DP World Tour’s 2025 Open De España.

“I started to play [golf] at the beginning of 2020. I just love playing,” Alcaraz said last fall. “I used to go to hit some balls in the driving range when I was really, really young. I liked it, but since 2020, I just started to play more, to go on the course, to play some holes. I just fell in love with golf. I started to play more and more. I saw myself improving, so it engaged me even more to the golf, and it has me. I just feel really peaceful when I go out and play some golf on the golf course.”

One might wonder just how peaceful it was with Djokovic and Zverev playing “mind games,” but one thing is for certain: A friendly round of golf can bring anyone together.

“It was great to spend some time with these guys,” Djokovic said. “Obviously, we’re all big rivals, but it’s also nice that we get along well and we can play other sports and spend some good time off the court.”

This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Carlos Alcaraz’s golf game impresses Novak Djokovic