Power Trip
Trump’s Golf Game Is a Lot Like His Presidency
My round at Bedminster with the man himself was a jaw-dropping preview of things to come
“To find a man’s true character, play golf with him.” — P.G. Wodehouse
You can learn a lot about how a president governs by watching his golf game. Bill Clinton, for example, had a reputation for cheating. George W. Bush rushed along, blind to the bigger picture. Gerald Ford was endearingly hapless. And then there’s President Donald J. Trump.
I played with him just once, on August 20, 2010, and it was quite an experience. At the time, I worked at Golf Magazine and had been invited to join the editor in chief and a corporate executive at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey. Back then, Trump was overly solicitous of golf media, eager to influence their course ranking lists to include his properties. The character I saw and heard over those few hours has since become a familiar part of public life.
Start with his disregard for protocols or courtesy. That was evident on the very first hole, when Trump drove his cart right onto the tee, forcing the group in front to scatter and let us play through. At any other course, such behavior would…
