MLS star Ronnie turns hand to golf

FROM the Old Lady of Turin to the Old American Golf Club of Texas, Ronnie O’Brien’s remarkable sporting career has taken another unlikely twist.

After 12 years as a professional footballer, which took the former Republic of Ireland U21 international from Middlesbrough to Juventus and on to Major League Soccer, O’Brien, 32, has been hired as an assistant golf pro at one of the most acclaimed courses in Texas.

Selected by both Golf Magazine and Golfweek among its ‘Best New’ course choices of 2010, the Old American Golf Club is close to Dallas, where midfielder O’Brien spent five seasons with the city’s MLS franchise and was regularly voted onto the league’s annual All-Star team.