Donald Trump: "Let golf be elitist"

[apprenti23]

Full story here: http://www.cbssports.com/golf/eye-on-golf/25231269/donald-trump-let-golf-be-elitist

 

Don't really want this to turn into a political battle, but I don't see how it can't so hopefully we can keep it civil.

 

I'm not a huge Trump fan; although I do respect him, and I do like his daughter, Ivanka (smokeshow). What many don't know is that Trump went bankrupt multiple times and persevered to build his huge enterprise. He is a go-getter and his confidence is almost hilarious to the point you'd think him an idiot.

 

Trump is a huge golf fan, although if you read the article he feels it should only be enjoyed by the rich.

 

What say you?

[wbealsd]

Trump is quite the attention getter

 

No doubt, he evokes strong emotions and that's a huge part of his success.

 

Love him, or hate him, he'll make you notice him.

 

Will he win the GOP nomination?  Unlikely.

 

That said, he WILL be a factor in driving the issues  and direction of the debates and primary campaigns.

 

IMHO, that's probably a good thing.  It will bring more attention to the early debates and provide more exposure to ALL the candidates in the field, and that's good for everyone that's interested in politics, regardless of your political views.

[revkev]

If we could succeed in making politics civil we should rule the world. The beauty if my job is tha I have no choice. I serve people regardless of what they say, do or believe and because I serve them, I love them.

 

In regards to Trump on golf there was certainly a time when this was the case, golf was for the elite only. It's not now though. Golf costs some money but think about it, it is within lots of people's means as a form of entertainment. You can buy a cheap set of clubs on eBay for a couple of hundred dollars, take group lessons at a local muni that will teach you the basics and in most places you can find somewhere to play for under $30. I would think that you could play golf for about the same amount of annual lay out as it would cost to be a gamer.

 

There are plenty of clubs in the metro NYC area that are for the elite and their entourages. That's fine and the Donald certainly is free to build more if he would like.

[Jmikecpa]

I have played his courses in NY, NJ and FL and they are nice but not really for the elitist these days. Trump National in Westchester opened with a $250k equity buy in and $50k a year in dues. I got offered a package to join with zero buy in and about $20k a year in dues and fees. That is a fairly steep drop off over a five year period. Fact of the matter is Trump is always hurting for cash and liquidity personally and with many of his companies. Trump has not personally filed for bankruptcy, although close in the real estate crash in 1990, but his casino holding company has filed four times. After the fourth filing he was required to relinquish control of the company and has only had a personal services contract with the properties in AC (he sold all other holdings).

 

My father in law worked directly for him years ago and well let's just say he is not a Donald fan. I have played golf with him and think he is.....well not my brand.

[Johan Rens]

Huge golf fans do not make statements like that!  There's simply no other sport embraced and loved so passionately by rich and poor, men and women alike in the world. By the way, if your venue is the host of a PGA Tour event, it does not mean you run the events.

[silver & black]

Trump is a huge golf fan, although if you read the article he feels it should only be enjoyed by the rich.

 

I'm a huge golf fan too. To Trump I say.... F*** YOU! on that particular subject.

 

If he were to somehow win the nomination (highly unlikely) I would vote for him. He is what this country needs "right now" to get it back on track. I voted for Perot for the same reason. That's as political as I'm going to get. 

[ZenGolfer]

You have to wonder what Trump is thinking lately.  Clearly he doesnt REALLY want to be POTUS.  As for golf being for the elite, thats probably not whats best for golf in the long term.  Golf is already losing players and making it elite and making it something that only rich people can afford isnt whats best for growing the game.

You have to wonder too why Trump would care.  I mean, its not as if he is playing on munis anyways.  You know that he always plays on either courses that he owns, or on luxury resort courses with his rich buddies.

His comments about them teaching golf to people who will never really be able to play it I found interesting too.  Id bet that I and most people who are on this forum play more golf than Mr Trump does and probably could beat him in match play.

[SPY ZINGER]

The problem is, Trump is right with most of what he says. It's not always politically correct so it becomes manufacturered taboo.

[ZenGolfer]

 What many don't know is that Trump went bankrupt multiple times and persevered to build his huge enterprise. He is a go-getter and his confidence is almost hilarious to the point you'd think him an idiot.

 

 

I believe that Trump filed for bankruptcy on his businesses but never filed personal bankruptcy.  Its actually not as uncommon as you think.  Theres lots of companies that do it as a way to get free of their debt, even though you could argue that they dont really need to do so.  It is a business tactic though.

It does kind of make laugh when people say theyd vote for Trump because he knows what it takes to run a successful business, so he'd know how to run this country.  

I'll give Trump that he isnt afraid to take risks in business but Im not sure I want him taking the same kind of risks with this country.  Unlike businesses, countries cant just declare bankruptcy to escape their debt.

[apprenti23]

The problem is, Trump is right with most of what he says. It's not always politically correct so it becomes manufacturered taboo.

You either love him or hate him, but you always know exactly how he feels on a subject, don't you?

[ZenGolfer]

The problem is, Trump is right with most of what he says. It's not always politically correct so it becomes manufacturered taboo.

You could argue though that because he is the rich elite, he has no concept of how the common man lives and how to make their lives better.  

Yes, he's right on some fronts but a lot of what he says are half truths.  He speaks of illegal immigration yet do you honestly believe that he doesnt employee illegal immigrants to work in his hotels?  His views on immigration arent anything new but like others before him, it glosses over the realities of present day.  If you depot them, theyre just going to cross the border again in a few days, not to mention they do a lot of jobs that most Americans would refuse to do.  Now, some people have said that we should put up a fence on the border and employ the National Guard to shoot anyone who tries to cross but whose going to pay for all that?  In the end, youre wasting a lot of money to accomplish nothing.

If it were as simple as Mr Trump tries to make it out to be, we would have solved our immigration problems in this country by now.

[ZenGolfer]

The problem is, Trump is right with most of what he says. It's not always politically correct so it becomes manufacturered taboo.

You could argue though that because he is the rich elite, he has no concept of how the common man lives and how to make their lives better.  

Yes, he's right on some fronts but a lot of what he says are half truths.  He speaks of illegal immigration yet do you honestly believe that he doesnt employee illegal immigrants to work in his hotels?  His views on immigration arent anything new but like others before him, it glosses over the realities of present day.  If you depot them, theyre just going to cross the border again in a few days, not to mention they do a lot of jobs that most Americans would refuse to do.  Now, some people have said that we should put up a fence on the border and employ the National Guard to shoot anyone who tries to cross but whose going to pay for all that?  In the end, youre wasting a lot of money to accomplish nothing.

If it were as simple as Mr Trump tries to make it out to be, we would have solved our immigration problems in this country by now.

[silver & black]

The problem is, Trump is right with most of what he says. It's not always politically correct so it becomes manufacturered taboo.

Agreed, but he's wrong on this one.

[Fireinthehole]

I think with the money he supposedly has he should find a Surgeon to remove his head from his posterior.

What burns me; aside from his announcement speech diatribe, is his insistence of being self made. Inheriting your father's company and allegedly 200 mil inheritance , kind of makes that impossible.

As far as golf, it seems his feeling of exclusion in other areas has spilled over. I wonder how long it'll be until the commoners have to bail out his company after they declare bankruptcy...

[mizuno_lover]

Ahhhh Donald "The Dick"!  Yes Donald, make it elitist and send all those hard working small businesses that make an honest living out of the game broke.  Make it so that the moms and dads who spend their hard earned disposable income to enjoy themselves after a hard week at work making you your millions, make it unaffordable for them.  Oh and while your at it if you get elected President make sure you send all the poorer people off to fight your elitist wars for you.  All I can add to that is that you are a dick pal and heaven protect us from elitist NAZI pricks like you who we beat in WW2 coz we'll beat you again if we have to.

 

Not that I have much of an opinion on the matter

[revkev]

You either love him or hate him, but you always know exactly how he feels on a subject, don't you?

With all due respect I don't know if that's the case. Whenever someone is so outspoken one wonders if he is outspoken for being outspoken's sake. He's a great capitalist (meant positivel). Trump is about making money. His primary asset has become his outspokenness. He must continually cultivate that asset to keep his brand relevant. I just don't know whether anything he says publicly can be believed.

 

That's not good for him in regards to running for office because I'm the type of voter he needs. Assuming he can garner his party's nominee nation which is highly unlikely.

 

He is today's PT Barnum though.

[silver & black]

I'm not a fan of the man as a person. I respect his business acumen. Do I think he would make a good President? Not really. I do think he is a mover and a shaker....something this country desperately needs right now. Maybe he can be the agitator that gets this lazy, do nothing, all for themselves Congress to move their collective asses and get something accomplished.

 

If nothing else, I love his lack of PC bullsh*t. He tells it like it is.... no sugar coating. If some people are offended, that's a good thing. More people need to be offended.... the truth hurts. This country is a on fast track to demise. Something or someone needs to wake people up before it's too late... if it isn't already.

[rvman]

I wish Gary Player was the president of golf worldwide. I don't think I've heard him say anything about golf that I disagreed with. He was spot on about Chambers Bay and making golf fun for the masses.

 

I STRONGLY disagree with Trump on the elitist talk. I'm cool with private clubs, but public courses should be Amateur Hacker friendly and affordable. Golf does not have to be expensive.

 

And I wish the PGA put out a separate Rules of Golf edition for amateurs who don't follow all the silly rules anyway on these beat up public courses.

[Fireinthehole]

I wish Gary Player was the president of golf worldwide. I don't think I've heard him say anything about golf that I disagreed with. He was spot on about Chambers Bay and making golf fun for the masses.

 

I STRONGLY disagree with Trump on the elitist talk. I'm cool with private clubs, but public courses should be Amateur Hacker friendly and affordable. Golf does not have to be expensive.

 

And I wish the PGA put out a separate Rules of Golf edition for amateurs who don't follow all the silly rules anyway on these beat up public courses.

Especially at the public course here in my town that floods for 2-3 weeks in the spring and the fall. Has no sand in bunkers and the slowest & bumpiest greens around.

Which they had a $175 for 3 years of membership deal I jumped on. Played enough the first month to never go back and get my money's worth

[xxio]

Pareto principle. I think that what Trump subscribes to as a businessman. 80% of sales-profit comes from 20%.

 

So he would rather concentrate on making $130 from the guy paying $200 on his upscale course or like some putter makers making $400 off a $80 putter than $20 in volume from the guy paying $42.

 

Only the elite have the disposable income for that to work.