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9
L
egendary golfer Arnold
Palmer played against many
Presidents: in fact, he had a
theory that you could judge the
man by how he approached the sport.
After telling Dwight Eisenhower
to tuck in his left elbow, the
President played the shot enough
times to rub his forearm raw. When
the wound was pointed out to him,
he shrugged it off as a scratch.
He claimed that Richard Nixon
was socially awkward during their
rounds and gave up after shooting a
79. Gerald Ford never dropped a ball
and played the game to the rules in
an unfussy, compact manner.
His theory has been extended
over the years. John F. Kennedy’s
aptitude for presentation is seen
in the fact that he played secretly
because it was seen as a rich-man’s
game. George H. W. Bush played
the game at record speeds, turning
it into an efficient and slightly
grueling battle.
Bill Clinton chewed on fat cigars
and engaged in noisy banter with
the other players.
So if golf can help us understand
the men from the Oval Office,
perhaps it is time to get to know
Donald J. Trump a little better. Of all
the golfing Presidents, he is the one
most at home on the green, at the
driving range and in the club house.
Donald Trump loves golf. And
when he decides to do something,
he tends to take it to the maximum,
gold-plated level. Luxury hotels,
celebrity TV hits, becoming
President…this is not a man who
settles for second best. He takes
golf very seriously.
Two simple facts demonstrate
this. He boasts (in both senses of
the word) a handicap of 3, and he
owns 17 golf courses across the globe.
But what does his approach
to golf teach us about Trump, the
man? Scanning through his history
in the sport, much of what we
already know about him can be
confirmed. He is confident to the
point of narcissism. He defines
people into two groups: winners
and losers. He is crafty and he can
stray outside the rules if it serves
his purpose. And finally, he is
fanatically ambitious.
There are, however, a few
surprises that emerge when the
evidence is analysed. Donald
Trump, it would appear, is a
pragmatist.
Given the fact that so much
of the criticism of his behaviour
is that he is guided by ideology, it
is surprising to note that when it
comes to golf, he is guided by the
objective, not the path.
Take his actual game. By all
accounts, Trump is an excellent
player. He regularly scores below
par and blitzes his opponents. He
is certainly has knocked JFK off
his perch as the best player of the
Presidents. Under scrutiny, the way
he plays reveals his methodology.