Trump golfs at his Virginia club amid the coronavirus pandemic
President Donald Trump was seen golfing at his Virginia club on Saturday and Sunday, marking his first visits to one of his golf properties since March amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The presidential motorcade arrived at Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Virginia, Saturday morning, according to pool reports. CNN’s Khalil Abdallah reported that the Secret Service members with Trump at the golf course were wearing masks, although the President and his golfing partners were not. The President was seen riding alone in his golf cart and a caddy didn’t appear to be with him, Abdallah reported.
The President was then seen golfing again at the property on Sunday.
At Friday’s White House briefing, Dr. Deborah Birx, a White House coronavirus task force official, said Americans should take this weekend to enjoy being outside, but they should do so with precautions.
“So please as you go out this weekend, understand you can go out, you can be outside. You can play golf, you can play tennis with marked balls. You can go to the beaches if you stay 6 feet apart, but remember that that is your space and that’s a space that you need to protect and ensure that you’re social distanced for others,” Birx said.
Prior to the weekend, Trump’s last golf outing was on March 8 when he visited the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida.
By CNN’s count, the Saturday and Sunday outings marked Trump’s 357th and 358th visits to one of his properties and his 265th and 266th trip to one of his golf clubs during his presidency.
Trump had previously called into a PGA golf program on NBC and told the host that he missed the sport and hasn’t been able to play amid the pandemic because he’s been busy.
“I do miss it. I haven’t played really since this problem that we have started. I haven’t been able to play golf for a while, I’ve been very busy and I think it’s just one of those things,” Trump said last week.
This story has been updated with Trump’s Sunday golf outing.
