Former World Champion competing in major tournament outside of WWE
It's rare to see WWE superstars compete in another sport, given how complicated professional wrestling is. However, a former WWE champion is set to play in a major tournament this weekend.
Before becoming a professional wrestler, The Miz was a basketball star in high school, even serving as the team captain. He also competed in swimming before going into reality television and the world of WWE.
The 43-year-old superstar will be participating in the 2024 American Century Championship from July 12 to 14. It is his third time in the celebrity golf tournament, and he'll be looking to have his best finish yet.
"Fit check for @acchampionship Day 1 of tournament play. 9:42am tee time. #LetsGo #ACCGolf," The Miz wrote on Instagram.
The Miz might be a two-time WWE champion, but he's not a great golfer compared to all the athletes and personalities in the past two American Century Championships. In his 2022 debut, he finished in 83rd place out of 87 participants.
It is not a bad finish for someone who plays the sport as a hobby, although he was worse last year. He finished in 91st place out of 93 participants, so he may need to do more work to not finish last this time around.
The good news for The Miz is that he's only tied with four other participants for the second-worst odds to win the tournament. Charles Barkley has the worst odds to take home the 2024 ACC trophy, as per Caesars Sportsbook.
The Miz loves to play golf to unwind from being a WWE superstar
In an interview with Gold Digest back in 2019, The Miz discussed his love for the sport and how it helps him unwind from wrestling. It helps him get relaxed after a hard week at work.
"With WWE, right before I go out to the ring, I'm focusing. I’m getting my mind absolutely correct so I know I can do my best. I look at golf as relaxation. But I have to have that focus so I can play well, because if I don’t play well, that relaxation goes away, and I get very pissed real quick," The Miz said.
Since The Miz and his family live in California, he gets to play golf whenever he has some free time. Some of his golf buddies are Michael Fabiano of the NFL Network and Jerry Cantrell of the band Alice in Chains.