Donald Trump claimed credit for a club championship despite reportedly not competing in the tournament in the same time parameters as everyone else.
Trump, the 45th president of the United States, claimed victory in the Senior Club championship at Trump International Golf Club in Palm Beach over the weekend.
“A great honor to have won the Senior Club championship at Trump International Golf Club, one of the best courses in the Country, in Palm Beach, Florida,” the former president wrote on his social media platform Truth Social.
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“Competed against many fine golfers, and was hitting the ball long and straight. The reason that I announce this on fabulous TRUTH is that, in a very real way, it serves as a physical exam, only MUCH tougher. You need strength and stamina to WIN, & I have strength & stamina – most others don’t. You also need strength & stamina to GOVERN!”
Nevertheless, the Daily Mail reports that Trump did not compete in the tournament at the same time as everyone else. While the tournament was slated for Saturday and Sunday, Trump was attending the North Carolina funeral for the vlogger Diamond. While at the funeral Trump complained about it running too long.
However, according to the report, “competitors arriving for day two of the contest on Sunday morning were surprised (although not exactly shocked) to see his name at the top of the leaderboard with a five-point lead over the overnight leader.”
The outlet explained that Trump shot a stellar round on Thursday. Trump counted this round, which was a score of 40 using the Stableford method, which gives one point for a bogey, two for par and three for a birdie. This score was five points better than the top mark from Saturday’s round.
A Trump spokesperson did not immediately respond to Daily Mail’s request for comment.
Trump has long faced allegations of bending the rules on the golf course.
“To say ‘Donald Trump cheats’ is like saying ‘Michael Phelps swims,’” longtime sportswriter Rick Reilly wrote in the book “Commander in Cheat: How Golf Explains Trump”, which came out in 2019. “He cheats at the highest level. He cheats when people are watching and he cheats when they aren’t. He cheats whether you like it or not. He cheats because that’s how he plays golf … if you’re playing golf with him, he’s going to cheat.”
This article was originally published at the New York Post and republished with permission.