18 times Donald Trump’s golf habit got political

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Paul Dallison writes Declassified, a weekly satirical column.

Donald Trump arrives in Scotland on Friday as part of a short visit to the United Kingdom. The locals are thrilled!

For Trump, a planned meeting with Prime Minister Keir Starmer will be way down the list of priorities for the trip, as he’s also visiting his golf resorts at Turnberry in Ayrshire and Menie in Aberdeenshire (on the west and east coasts, respectively).

But Trump’s hobby can’t be separated from his day job. Here are 18 times (for the uninitiated, there are 18 holes on a golf course) that Trump saw golf and politics collide.

Hole 1: An Open and shut case

Turnberry will not host the prestigious Open Championship anytime soon, the game’s R&A governing body said in March. R&A boss Mark Darbon told Sky News that Turnberry was a “challenging” venue and there were no plans to schedule a championship there. Darbon also implied Trump’s position as U.S. president may overshadow any tournament: “We need to be confident that the focus will be on the sport and we need to ensure that the venue works for our requirements.” Last week, Darbon said he’d been having talks with Trump’s son Eric about the future of major events at Turnberry.

Hole 2: Welcome to Scotland

Having a Trump-owned golf course on your doorstep is either a) a great way to bring cash and jobs into a remote area, or b) an absolute disgrace, depending on your view of golf (“a good walk spoiled,” according to the quote attributed to everyone from Mark Twain to Oscar Wilde) and Trump (“a c**t,” according to a sign brandished by the late comedian Janey Godley when Trump was in Scotland in 2016). Trump’s last visit as president, in 2018, prompted protests in Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow. This year, several arrests have been made in connection with vandalism at Turnberry. Trump wrote in March that Starmer had informed him “they caught the terrorists who attacked the beautiful Turnberry,” and that he hoped they would “be treated harshly.”

Hole 3: Don’t mention Jeffrey Epstein

Speaking of angry locals … a video posted on social media this week by a group called Everyone Hates Elon showed a sign placed at the entrance to Trump’s Aberdeen course reading “Twinned with Epstein Island.” Pre-visit, Trump kicked a Wall Street Journal reporter out of the press pool for the trip after the newspaper published an article alleging the president had sent Epstein, who was later convicted for sex offences, a 50th birthday letter that included a drawing of a naked woman. POLITICO has not verified the existence of such a letter. Trump called the WSJ report “false and defamatory” and has sued for at least $10 billion.

Hole 4: False valuations and a feisty fisherman

A fraud lawsuit filed in 2022 against Trump and three of his children accused them of knowingly inflating the valuations of their Scottish resorts. The Trump Organization was accused of lying about the value of real estate to secure loans and pay less tax. Trump dismissed the lawsuit as “another witch hunt.” Trump’s desire to build and develop golf courses got him into a fight (almost literally) with a Scottish fisherman. Michael Forbes refused to sell his house to make way for development, prompting Trump to say that Forbes’ property was “beyond disrepair” and “a pigsty.” Forbes told Aberdeen Live: “When I met him, all he talked about was … money. I really regret to this day that I didn’t knock him on his arse.”

Hole 5: Cops on course

The Scottish Police Federation, which represents rank-and-file officers, said it was concerned about excessive working hours during Trump’s latest visit and was considering legal action against police chiefs. But you do need security when Trump is golfing: In September 2024, authorities said a Secret Service agent had spotted a gunman with a rifle sticking through the fence while the president was playing at his course in West Palm Beach, Florida. “The problem is … that he golfs a lot. He golfs all the time, so it doesn’t take a neurosurgeon to figure out that if he’s down at Mar-a-Lago, and it’s nice weather, he’s probably going to a golf course,” Mike Olson, a 21-year veteran of the Secret Service, told our U.S. colleagues.

Hole 6: An expensive pastime

Trump does indeed go golfing a lot. According to ethics watchdog Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), in the first six months of this term Trump made 62 visits to his golf courses. This, according to CREW, was an increase on the first six months of his last term, when he made 42 visits. These visits included events and other visits during which Trump did not necessarily play golf. The website didtrumpgolftoday.com, which uses data from Trump’s published schedule, reckons the president has played golf 43 days out of the 186 he has been in office. A 2019 U.S. Government Accountability Office report estimated that every golf trip costs taxpayers $1.4 million. Someone should tell DOGE.

Hole 7: Buggies and toilets

All those Secret Service officials keeping the president safe have got to get around Trump’s course at Bedminster, New Jersey — and they’ve also got to go to the toilet. According to government procurement data seen by the Independent, the Secret Service signed a deal that’s worth more than $550,000 with Associates Golf Car Service of Poughkeepsie, New York to rent golf carts until June 2026; and a deal with Restroom Resources LLC of Wrightstown, New Jersey, for “portable restroom rentals and services” worth $80,000 that runs (pun intended) until May 2026. Taxpayers foot those bills.

Hole 8: Please donate generously to help rioters

Trump’s golf course at Bedminster was set to host the 2022 PGA Championship before authorities changed the decision following the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol by his supporters. In September 2024, a fundraising event to help with legal fees for Jan. 6 defendants — scheduled for the same Bedminster club — was called off at short notice. Tickets ranged from $1,500 per person to $50,000 for a “platinum table” for 12. Trump was listed as an “invited speaker,” although not a confirmed one.

Hole 9: Never mind the tariffs, here’s a swanky dinner

Days after Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariff announcement shook the entire global trade order, he was at a dinner for LIV Golf, the Saudi-backed golf tour. “Recession fears are rising. The stock market is tanking. But don’t worry, Donald Trump is golfing,” Colorado Democrat Jason Crow said in a post on social media. Senator Tammy Duckworth, a Democrat from Illinois, added that the president had had “a long, hard week of crashing the stock market and making virtually everything more expensive for middle-class Americans. But at least he’s getting some time to unwind.”

Hole 10: South African president gets stuck in the rough

Trump famously enjoys being complimented and receiving gifts, but not always. In March, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa brought champion golfers Retief Goosen and Ernie Els to the White House, brandished a book about his country’s courses (bragging that the tome “weighs 14 kilograms”), and said he’d been practicing his swing. Ramaphosa added: “Our links are really long-lasting,” but it turned out to be a trade reference, not a golf one. Trump was having none of it and accused South Africa of allowing illegal discrimination against white farmers.

Hole 11: If you’re good at golf, you’re likely on Trump’s good side

Finnish President Alexander Stubb finished second in a triathlon this month (that’s swimming, cycling and running). Trump’s idea of a triathlon is probably a cheeseburger, fries and a soda. But the two men share a love of golf, and in March they played a round together as well as talking about Ukraine and icebreaker ships. Both Trump and U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham praised Stubb’s golf skills. According to CREW, Trump has hosted 19 visits from foreign government officials from 10 countries this term. Political groups and foreign governments have also held 49 events at Trump properties.

Hole 12: And if you’re not good at golf, learn

Even before Trump officially took office for a second time, world leaders were preparing to meet him on the golf course. In November 2024, the office of Yoon Suk Yeol said the South Korean president had been practising golf — for the first time in eight years — ahead of future Trump meetings. “A lot of people close to President Trump … [told me] President Yoon and Trump will have good chemistry,” Yoon told a press conference. Yoon now has more time on his hands to practice as he’s no longer president and faces criminal charges for insurrection following his attempt to impose martial law last year.

Hole 13: A great location for a tough interview

During his 2023 trip to Scotland, Trump sat down at Turnberry to answer questions from the U.K.’s foremost hard-hitting political interviewer — er, Nigel Farage. The scourge of the British political classes used his half hour with Trump wisely, asking such probing questions as: “You turned this golf course around. It’s now the No. 1 course in the whole of Britain and Europe. You’ve got this magnificent hotel. You must have missed this place?” Trump replied that he had “very powerful ideas on golf and where it should go.” (Getting the ball into the hole in as few shots as possible?)

Hole 14: Covid haves and have-nots

In March 2020, as Covid-19 caused havoc and death across the globe, Trump brought in a travel ban targeting the 26 European countries that comprise the visa-free Schengen area. Cynics were quick to point out that the U.K. and Ireland, both home to Trump-branded hotels and golf courses that were struggling as global business tanked, were exempt from the ban. From the time of the first reported death in the U.S. from Covid (on Feb. 6) until Sept. 22 (by which time some 200,000 had died), Trump went golfing 25 times, according to Business Insider, quoting Trump Golf Count, a now-defunct site that tracked the president’s golf outings.

Hole 15: Obama plays too much golf. No, scratch that.

Trump mocked Barack Obama more than two dozen times for going golfing while there were issues that needed the White House’s attention. “Can you believe that, with all of the problems and difficulties facing the U.S., President Obama spent the day playing golf?” Trump said in 2014. In August 2016 he vowed that if he became president, he wouldn’t have time for sport: “I’m going to be working for you, I’m not going to have time to go play golf.” Erm.

Hole 16: Warning, water hazard

In January, as deadly wildfires raged across California, Trump threatened to withhold aid to the state unless it distributed more water to the Los Angeles area. “They have a valve — think of a sink, but multiply it by many thousands of times the size of it, it’s massive,” Trump told reporters. “And you turn it back toward Los Angeles. Why aren’t they doing it?” Local officials dealing with water resources said this was not the cause of the problem, while his political opponents suspected an ulterior motive, as the president has a golf course in LA. California Democrat Isaac Bryan said: “Everything he has ever done in terms of his civic service has been with a personal agenda in mind, one that is profitable, one that is self-interested and one that is not rooted in the actual needs of people and at times, not rooted in reality or science.”

Hole 17: Commander-in-Chief vs. The Boss

Rock star Bruce Springsteen opened his European tour this year by saying: “The America I love, the America I’ve written about, that has been a beacon of hope and liberty for 250 years, is currently in the hands of a corrupt, incompetent and treasonous administration.” Trump took it badly, and the two men traded barbs. Then, in late May, Trump put out social media posts in which he hit a golf ball. The video then shows a clip of Springsteen tripping at one of his shows and falling on the stage. A golf ball had been added to the second clip as if to suggest that Trump was responsible for hitting Springsteen and making him fall. Ba-dum-tish.

Hole 18: He’s been accused of not always playing by the rules

There have long been claims that while Trump plays a lot of golf, he doesn’t always stick to the letter of the law. Rick Reilly, a former Sports Illustrated columnist, wrote a book called “Commander in Cheat: How Golf Explains Trump.” “Trump doesn’t just cheat at golf,” Reilly wrote. “He throws it, boots it, and moves it. He lies about his lies. He fudges and foozles and fluffs. At Winged Foot [in New York state], where Trump is a member, the caddies got so used to seeing him kick his ball back onto the fairway they came up with a nickname for him: ‘Pele.’” The actor Samuel L. Jackson told United Airlines’ Rhapsody magazine about his love of golf. Asked if he was a better golfer than Trump, Jackson said: “Oh, I am, for sure. I don’t cheat.” However, John Nieporte, head professional at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, told The Times that Trump is very good. “The proof’s in the pudding,” Nieporte said, pointing at the president’s record in competitions. “I’ve seen him win club championships, sinking 60ft putts.” Trump claims to have won three club championships this year alone and, in 2024, was given the Trump International Golf Club Most Improved Player Award.

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