Rory McIlroy teed it up with the president of the United States, Donald Trump on Sunday morning at Trump International. McIlroy rode in the cart for all 18 holes with the president, and told No Laying Up the following:
“He probably shot around 80. He’s a decent player for a guy in his 70’s!”
This picture was posted by Clear Sports, which also shows Paul O’Neill and Clear Sports CEO Garry Singer, although Rory confirmed to No Laying Up that they were not a part of the grouping. The four ball was rounded out by Nick Mullen from ISM, and Rich Levine (a friend of Trump’s).
Big battle today at Trump International with Clear CEO Garry Singer @McIlroyRory @PaulONeillYES @realDonaldTrump Drain the putt… pic.twitter.com/AZJqEVtlBT
— ClearSports (@ClearSportsLLC) February 19, 2017
Rory said that he did not get the call to play until Saturday night asking if he would play Sunday morning. McIlroy is nursing a stress fracture in his rib, and was not planning to play golf until the following weekend, but said he had to make an exception for the president.
McIlroy also said that he played off the forward tees but did hit some drivers, and that TrackMan was telling him that his swing was nearly at full speed. Rory also confirmed to No Laying Up that his rehab is going according to schedule, and he plans to play in the WGC-Mexico Championship next week as scheduled.
UPDATE:
Apparently this news contradicts a previous statement made by White House spokesman Sarah Huckabee Sanders. She told reporters on Sunday that the president “played a couple of holes” earlier that day but that she didn’t believe it was “a full round.”
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This story says McIlroy played 18 holes w/ POTUS Sunday, directly contradicting what WH told reporters https://t.co/mojJjyUDki https://t.co/QEVUhJ2smR
— Mike Memoli (@mikememoli) February 20, 2017
UPDATE #2:
The White House has issued a statement regarding this post:
Asked if Trump played a full round with McIlroy, White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said, “He intended to play a few holes and decided to play longer.”