Donald Trump plays golf very often, but is he good?
US President Donald Trump has a real passion for golf. He has played it almost every fourth day since his inauguration. With so many hours under his belt, he must have a low level... But is he really talented?
Between March 8 and May 23, Donald Trump did not play golf once. A feat for those who usually never leave the green for long. Indeed, the American president devotes a real passion to the little white ball. A hobby that makes people cringe in the United States, in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Since his inauguration in January 2017, Donald Trump has visited a golf course 262 times, according to the Trump Golf Count website, which tracks the president's adventures on the course. Of these 262 visits, the 74-year-old would have made 125 games.
Golf, exercise?
During the same period, also as President of the United States, Barack Obama had visited golf 179 times, and had played at least 101 rounds. During his, Donald Trump does not necessarily talk politics. He even recently explained on Twitter that golf was his way of exercising. This contrasts a bit with the videos where we see him driving his cart at full speed to get to the next hole…
On the other hand, he plays most of his games with athletes, and even top-flight golfers like Tiger Woods or Rory Mcllroy. The latter did not seem to be disappointed, because if there is something Donald Trump is good at, it is golf. “The 45th president is a real golfer”, even assures the specialized site Golf Digest. The American media New Yorker goes even further, even evoking “one of the best of the many golfers to have been president of the United States”. But is it that good?
“You feel someone who plays there often”
Grégory Havret, professional French golfer, answers us: “From what we see on the videos, it is certain that he has a very good level. It's fluid, natural, you can feel someone who plays it often! “Because in the ranking of golfers, called indexes, the American president would be at 2.8, the worst level being 50. “To compare, you can go pro below 4 or 5. Afterwards, the more you go down, the more he there is level, but when the index is below 10, we are already on a very strong person, ”explains Grégory Havret.
In 2017, Rory Mcllroy, one of the best golfers on the planet, also went in this direction in the American media Business Insider: "He is a good player for a 70-year-old man". When Tiger Woods said for his part in a blog: “What impressed me the most was the distance at which he sends the ball at 70 years old. »
Bad player ?
And Donald Trump ensures it himself, he has won many competitions. Eighteen to be precise, without any having been made public... His level, he owes it only to his talent, he explains to Golf Digest: "I see golf as a very natural. I never really wanted to know a lot about my technique. I trust my instincts, in golf as in many other things. In politics for example?
If his level is certainly good, even very good, Donald Trump does not do like everyone else in golf as in politics. According to the American daily The Washington Post, the President of the United States does not hesitate to pass on the green in a golf cart, to talk while the others are playing, to replay his ball if his shot does not please him... earned a message from American actor Samuel L. Jackson, claiming that Trump was a cheater.
The president then took him to task on Twitter: “I don’t cheat at golf, but you do: with your game, you have no choice. And stop advertising yourself! " Bad player ?
