When and where did Michael Phelps make the famous 159-ft long golf putt?

28-time Olympic medalist swimmer Michael Phelps may have parted ways from swimming in 2016, but not from sports. He gradually shifted his focus to golf and achieved marvelous heights.

In 2012, even before his final retirement, Phelps made history with the longest-televised putt of 159 feet. He achieved this milestone at Dunhill Links at Kingsbarns. This became a world record, before ultimately being broken by Ian Poulter at the Open Championship in July 2022 with a 162-feet long putt.

This also made Michael Phelps a world record holder in two different sports. He made an eagle putt of 159 feet when he was short par-4. This achievement made the Baltimore bullet register his name in the history book of the prestigious sport of golf.

Phelps at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship - Day Three

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Michael Phelps' achievements as a swimmer

Apart from being the greatest Olympian of all time with 28 medals, which included 23 golds, Michael Phelps also held several other records in swimming.

One of his initial years' achievements was being the youngest swimmer of all time to set a world record at the mere age of 15 years and nine months. he set up a world record for the fastest swim in the 200-meter butterfly with a time of 1:54.92 at the 2001 World Aquatic Championships. However, this record was broken by a Hungarian teenager Kristof Milak at the 2019 World Aquatic Championships with a bullet speed of 1:50.73.

Phelps at the medal ceremony of 2004 Athens Olympics

Michael Phelps' medal heist started with his second appearance at an Olympic event in Athens in 2004. In Athens, Phelps secured six gold medals and two bronze medals, missing Mark Spitz's most gold medals in an Olympic event by just one gold. However, he did equal the record for most medal counts in a single Olympic event held by gymnast Alexander Dityatin.

Although Phelps might have missed Spitz's mark in Athens, he did not stop chasing the record. In the very next Olympic event came his greatest achievement as an athlete, i.e., winning the most gold medals in a single Olympic event. He broke the record held by Spitz by winning eight gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte at the medal ceremony of the 2012 London Olympics

Phelps competed in two more Olympic events. At the 2012 London Olympics, he managed to secure six medals, including four golds and two silvers. Later in his comeback Olympic event in 2016 in Rio, he again turned out to have a glorious run of six medals, which included five golds and one silver.

Michael Phelps holds a freak 82 medal in major swimming tournaments. Out of which, 65 are gold, 14 are silver and just three are bronze. His most dominating World Championships came in 2007, where he won a gold medal in every event he competed in.

Phelps at the 2007 FINA World Championships

Phelps' record-breaking international appearances have fetched him eight "World Swimmer of the Year" Awards and eleven "American Swimmer of the Year" Awards.

An interesting fact about Michael Phelps is that he holds even more medals than the 161 countries who ever competed at the Olympics.