The Commander in Cheat

Everyone knows that one’s golf game is a peek into one’s true character.

Jul 29, 2025

Donald Trump at his Turnberry Golf Resort in Scotland over the weekend the weekend

A Compulsive, Obsessive, Pathological Cheater

He cheated on his three wives, once notoriously with a porn star. He’s also known for cheating in business, cheating on his taxes, cheating his employees, cheating in politics, and cheating in golf.

Author Rick Reilly writes this in his book Commander in Cheat: How Golf Explains Trump:

“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, that’s how he learned it, that’s how he needs it, and whether you’re his pharmacist or Tiger Woods, if you’re playing golf with him, he’s going to cheat… And the guy who cheats on the course is going to cheat in business, or on his taxes or, say, in politics.”

In Scotland over the weekend, it appears that Donald Trump cheated again, with the whole world watching.

This video clip went internationally viral after being posted on X. It shows two staff members walking in front of Trump's buggy as they make their way around his Trump Turnberry course on Sunday.

You can see one of the men furtively toss a ball behind him in the rough light as Trump exits his buggy and heads towards the ball.

From the UK’s Daily Mail to the Times of India, The South China Morning Post to the Sunday Times of South Africa, and on social media platforms worldwide, the Commander in Cheat was pointed out for breaking the etiquette of what was traditionally called the “Gentlemen’s Game.”

Honesty, Integrity, Etiquette, And Respect

Golf relies heavily on self-regulation, as players are expected to be honest about their scores and call penalties on themselves, even if no one else observes a rule violation.

But Trump reportedly cheats… incessantly. People playing with him have reported that he often kicks and throws his ball to improve its position. He takes them out of sandtraps, has his caddie move his opponents’ balls to worse positions, and always lies about his score.

Ironically, golf was deemed the “Gentleman’s Game” in 18th-century Scotland, reflecting the historical association of the sport with values such as honesty, integrity, etiquette, and respect.

Postscript:

Two days ago, the New York Times reported that $934 million was mysteriously transferred from the Pentagon’s project to modernize America’s aging, ground-based nuclear missiles.

“Congressional budget sleuths have come to think that amount, slipped into an obscure Pentagon document sent to Capitol Hill as a “transfer” to an unnamed classified project, almost certainly includes the renovation of the new, gold-adorned Air Force One that Mr. Trump desperately wants in the air before his term is over.”