I used to golf a lot.
I was a member of a “men’s club” at a course back in the 70’s and 80’s, came in second in the Riverside County Amateur (4th flight) in 1981, and taught my four boys how to golf in the mid- to -late 80’s (son Jeff became Number 1 on his high school golf team). We moved to Jack Nicklaus’ Bear Creek County Club in 1988, became members of the country club, won the 4th Flight club championship in 1990, took lessons and got my handicap down to a six, played team golf, and was Runner-up in the 1st Flight club championship in 2002.
So, I know a bit about competitive golf at the amateur level and how anal serious competitors are about rules, procedures, and the concept of eliminating any sort of competitive advantage in legitimate golf tournaments. Handicap “manipulators” and rules cheats are looked upon as vermin by competitive golfers, and only serious golfers compete in club championships where the Rules of Golf are adhered to… to the letter.
Having said all of this, one can imagine my surprise upon hearing that ex-President Donald Trump “won” the Senior club championship at his golf course recently… while only competing against the field for one day of the two-day tournament.
How can this happen, you might ask? Mr. Trump was out-of-town for day one of the two-day tournament, so he simply turned in a score that he had allegedly shot earlier in the week while playing with friends… out of sight of the club championship competitors.
How could this be allowed, you ask? Trump owns the private golf course (Trump International Golf Club) so he apparently makes his own rules, including posting a private round that gave him a five-stroke lead before he actually teed it up against the competition.
It sounds like something a tin pot dictator would do. I recall, back in the day, Chairman Mao Tse Tung bragged about swimming several hundred miles down the Yangtse River in China, establishing some sort of Guinness world record. The guy was a ruthless Communist dictator… who would dare challenge his “achievement”?
The bigger question is why anyone would want to cheat to win an award, set a record, or achieve bragging rights… what is really accomplished other than revealing to real competitors what an unabashed slimeball you are. Trump’s prowess as a golf cheat was even detailed some years back in Rick Reilly’s book, “Commander in Cheat”.
Let’s face it, only a sick ass narcissist would be proud of a “club championship” title that he didn’t earn. Predictably, right after the non-competitive competition, Trump went on social media to brag about his victory and claim that it was a reflection of his excellent health and physical stamina.
Don’t make me laugh: the guy is obese. More importantly, I think, is who were these strawmen golfers who agreed to be foils for Mr. Trump using his special rules? Were they really serious golfers or M.A.G.A. lackeys seeking The Boss’ approval?
Not a very proud moment for these supposed “competitors”. They gave their opponent the equivalent of a 250-mile head start in the Indianapolis 500. With his special rules in place, it would have been amazing if Trump wouldn’t have prevailed.
Of course, Trump is the same deranged loser who claimed that he won the 2020 Presidential election when, in fact, he lost the contest by 7 million votes. If he cannot win a contest, he simply claims that it was “rigged”.
Recall that the Cheater-in-Chief tried to change the rules after that contest (i.e. the January 6th, 2021 Capitol Riot) but couldn’t get a court in the land to go along with his shameless coup.
If Americans have learned anything about this scumbag in the past thirty years it is that he believes that the rules that everyone else lives by are not applicable to him. Taxes, laws, precedents, Presidential protocol, telling the truth, golf rules… these are for the regular schmucks, not for Donald Trump.
This is the same guy who, as a young man, bailed on the military draft by getting his family doctor to claim that he had “bone spurs” in his feet. Of course, those painful spurs didn’t keep him from playing tennis and golf and “kicking” a real military hero like Senator John McCain.
I wonder if any one of the “losers” in the Senior Club Championship had the temerity to claim that the competition was “rigged”?
Because if Donald Trump hates anything, it’s rigging… unless he is the one doing it.