Prince William looks handsome as he rocks top hat

Prince William looked dapper as he rocked a top hat during his appearance at Royal Ascot on Wednesday.

Multiple pictures of the future king were shared on the official Instagram account of the Prince and Princess of Wales in the evening.

The Prince of Wales was not accompanied by his wife Kate Middleton who decided to skip the event at the eleventh hour.

The Princess of Wales's need for balance as she returns to public engagements after her cancer treatment last year was cited as a reason for her absence.

However, the eldest son of King  Charles was spotted talking to his mother-in-law Carole Middleton at the racecourse.

William was part of the royal procession at the horseracing event in southern England alongside his father King Charles and Queen Camilla.

Citing a royal source, Reuters reported that Kate was disappointed not to be attending.

The princess has gradually been returning to her public royal role after completing a course of preventative chemotherapy last year to address the presence of an unspecified form of cancer.

Royal Ascot sees top horses from around the world compete over five days in races worth up to a million pounds.