Undoubtedly, the largest question on voters’ minds as they head to the booths this November is who would win in a golf match between Republican candidate former President Donald Trump or President Joe Biden. Conversation around the topic rose to such a fervor that it was argued during the June 27 debate between the two candidates at the time. Trump claimed that he “just won two club championships — not even senior, two regular club championships,” and boasted that he could easily beat Biden in a match. Biden retorted that he would be “happy to play golf” with the former president on the condition that Trump was willing to carry his own bag. Alas, presidential elections are not chosen via golf; most voters are likely unconcerned with who the superior player is, and Biden is no longer the Democratic nominee following the disastrous debate. However, we will nonetheless analyze who would win in a hypothetical match between the two in order to hopefully lighten the mood of a very serious election.
Few U.S. presidents have been more golf-obsessed than Donald Trump. He owns a remarkable 18 golf courses around the world, including the very highly ranked Trump Turnberry in Scotland and Trump National Bedminster in New Jersey. Jack Nicklaus, one of the greatest golfers of all time, once claimed that Trump “loves the game of golf more than he loves money.”
Whether Trump is actually as good as he claims is questionable — his alleged 2.5 handicap would place him among the best amateur golfers in the world — but he can certainly play, even if he is 78. In a viral video this summer, Trump was a guest on two-time U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau’s YouTube channel. The two attempted to break 50 from the front tees in a scramble format — meaning they both hit shots and played from the better of the two balls. The video has nearly 13 million views and is by far the most watched video on DeChambeau’s channel.
Trump’s swing is no work of art, but it’s extremely effective. His club path is shallow and his hands stay low, never getting higher than his chest. He doesn’t take the club back very far, but he torques quickly and rotates fully through the ball. It’s a short and fast motion that generates a surprising amount of force. While his age limits his power, Trump hits it far for a 78-year-old, and his swing produces a dependable left-to-right ball flight that rarely missed the fairway in the video with DeChambeau.
It’s also clear that Trump doesn’t lack any confidence. After hitting his tee shot on the par 3 second hole inside of ten feet, he asked DeChambeau, “You think Biden can do that?”
Biden’s athletic abilities are often called into question, especially after videos of him falling down the stairs and falling off of a bike have gone viral. Indeed, Biden is currently 81 years old, which explains why his physical abilities leave something to be desired. In his prime, Biden was a talented high school football player and may have been a very good athlete. On the U.S. Golf Association’s website, Biden’s handicap is listed as a 6.7, although the newest rounds he has listed are from 2018. During the debate, he claimed his handicap was an eight.
Taking either of these ostensible handicaps at face value would mean Biden is quite the skilled golfer, as any handicap lower than 10 is difficult to achieve. Biden’s golf coach backed up the president’s claims that he would beat Trump in a match and implied that Trump would likely cheat in a hypothetical match between the two.
Whether Biden truly lives up to the handicap is hard to verify, as there is little footage of him actually playing golf. In footage that does exist, Biden’s swing actually looks fairly good. His backswing is not particularly long, and he doesn’t appear to be generating a lot of ball speed. Still, his downswing and follow through look solid and repeatable, especially for a senior player. He’s clearly an experienced golfer, and his advanced age would likely be the only factor holding him back on the course.
If the two hit the links today to settle this, Trump would likely come out on top. But if both are telling the truth about their lowest handicaps, peak Biden might stand a chance against peak Trump. Either way, a match between these two would be must-see TV but probably more for its comedic value than for the athletic prowess of the two.
