Last Thursday, the LIV Golf Tour added another fresh face to its lineup: former US President Donald Trump.
Trump will compete in the pro-am tournament of the Saudi-backed start-up tour on Thursday. He’ll be joined by his son, Eric, as well as LIV Golf pros Dustin Johnson and Bryce DeChambeau.
The pro-am is not planned to be aired or played in front of a live audience. Nonetheless, many will be wondering how well the 45th President of the United States would fare on one of his 16 courses.
Here’s all you need to know about Donald Trump’s golf game!
According to Golf Digest, Trump has a handicap of 2.8, which means that based on his greatest scores, he could play a game of golf at 2.8 strokes over par. His best round of golf on his handicap index is a 70, indicating that he is capable of going low.
Trump is regarded as a good golfer, as evidenced by his low handicap.
But it’s not simply the data that support that assertion. According to Golf.com, eighteen-time major winner Jack Nicklaus declared Trump “the best player” of the presidents he has played with and even likened Trump’s skill to his own in 2019.
“Trump plays pretty well. He plays a little bit like I do. He doesn’t really ever finish many holes. But he can hit the ball, and he goes out and plays and just enjoys it. But he’s won several club championships. He can play.”
Bryson DeChambeau was similarly complimentary of Trump’s golf game after playing with him at the LIV Golf pro-am.
“He’s actually a really good golfer,” DeChambeau said, per USA Today. “He stripes it down the middle of the fairway and has good iron game and putts it pretty well.”
Jaime Diaz of Golf Digest seemed to concur with the duo’s judgement. Diaz recounted playing golf with Trump in 2013 and 2014, calling him “the genuine thing” as a player.
Diaz praised Trump’s iron play and ball hitting in particular. While Trump hit the ball only 230 yards off the tee, he noted his swing was built for strong approach shots with his irons.
This is largely due to Trump’s swing path, which DeChambeau described as “quirky.” Trump typically instructs his club to hit the ball with strength on an inside route. The key to doing so is opening up his front hip, which allows him to take that club path.
“For me, it’s all about the hips,” Trump said of his swing to Diaz. “Just get them out of the way as fast and as hard as I can and let the arms really swing through.”
As for putting, Diaz thought Trump was solid in that regard, but Trump seemed to think it was the best part of his game.
“I’m a great putter,” Trump said to Diaz.
