A former pro golfer has spoken out about his incredible round of Thanksgiving four-ball with President Donald Trump, Tiger Woods, and the current World No. 1 pro, saying the president was ‘gracious and entertaining’.
Former US Ryder Cup player Brad Faxon teamed up with Trump against Woods and top-ranked Dustin Johnson at the president’s golf club in Jupiter, Florida on Friday for a friendly 18 holes.
‘He’s a fun guy to joke around with. You would think you’d have to tip-toe around a bit with the President, but he immediately puts you at ease,’ Faxon, a member at Trump National Golf Club, wrote in an essay for Golfweek.
Before the game began, Trump had tweeted that he was heading to the course for a quick round with Woods and Johnson, without mentioning Faxon.
Brad Faxon (left) says he and Trump played Dustin Johnson and Tiger Woods to a draw. Johnson (bearded, to Trump’s right) is the current number-one-ranked player in the world.
Faxon needled Trump for not mentioning him in this tweet, which the president laughed at
‘I kind of busted his chops and said, “Hey, where’s the love? I thought you were going to tweet my name too!”, Faxon wrote.
‘He laughed, and I told him I was trying to get up to 70,000 followers on Twitter. Trump immediately replied, “I have 158 million.”‘ (Trump has 43 million followers on his personal account.)
The best-ball match was played for a ‘small wager’, writes Faxon, who with Trump played up to the blue tees at about 6,500 yards, while Woods and Johnson played from the back tees at 7,600 yards.
‘The President was gracious and entertaining,’ Faxon wrote. ‘He told some stories, things he loves about the job and things he doesn’t love. I think he was excited to be in that group and we had a lot of fun.’
Faxon missed a nine-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole that would have earned himself and the president a win, ending the match in a draw.
President Donald Trump played golf Friday with (left to right) Tiger Woods, Brad Faxon and Dustin Johnson
Faxon said that Trump is ‘a fun guy to joke around with’ and put everyone at ease on the course
The former pro said that Woods ‘looked great’ on the course, a startling nugget about the 41-year-old who has struggled with pain issues.
Woods had fusion surgery on his back earlier this year, and in May he was found asleep at the wheel of his Mercedes by the side of a road, drugged on a cocktail of painkillers.
Yet Woods was swinging freely and driving past Johnson about half the time, Faxon wrote, adding that his short game looked good as well.
‘Tiger looked like he had all the touch shots down. On the very first hole he hit a pitch shot over a bunker that looked great. Hit some tough little pitch shots, tough chip shots and hit some close. Some to gimme’ distance,’ wrote Faxon.
‘I’m just so happy that he’s happy and can swing a golf club pain-free.’
Woods last played a round with Trump in December 2016 when he was president-elect, according to Golf Digest.
The former world number-one player later wrote on his website that Trump had serious golf skills.
Trump was filmed walking to the driving range but Secret Service wouldn’t let anyone other than the pre-cleared professionals get near him while he swung a club
Tiger Woods last played a round of golf with Trump in December 2016 (pictured)
‘What most impressed me was how far he hits the ball at 70 years old. He takes a pretty good lash,’ Woods wrote of Trump.
‘Our discussion topics were wide-ranging; it was fun. We both enjoyed the bantering, bickering and needling.’
‘We didn’t have a match and played for fun,’ Woods added. ‘I was testing drivers and fairway woods, and changed some settings. I think he enjoyed seeing the difference in shots when you experiment.’
Trump, an avid golfer and gold course owner, criticized then-President Barack Obama frequently during his presidential campaign for playing too much golf while in office.
‘While our wonderful president was out playing golf all day, the TSA is falling apart, just like our government! Airports a total disaster!’ he tweeted in May 2016.
Trump has visited golf courses on nearly 80 days of his 308-day presidency.