Not April Fools: Donald Trump Says PGA Tour Moving Longtime Doral Stop To...Mexico City

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If you listened to ShackHouse episode 7, you know I shared the view of several PGA Tour insiders that the longtime Doral stop was soon coming to an end and likely headed to Mexico as a World Golf Championship tournament.

Business Insider picked up the comments, but I've held out on doing a story in hopes of pinning down what city and course is in the running to replace a storied PGA Tour stop.

(Background: The PGA Tour had a long term deal to play events at Doral but they had an out should they not be able to secure a sponsor. With Cadillac done as sponsor of the WGC at Doral, the tour has not been able to find a sponsor and has been planning its exit.)

Now it seems the host at Doral, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, revealed today on Hannity that the tour is taking its annual Miami stop to Mexico City and he hopes they have kidnapping insurance!

Here is the video, followed by a Tweeted transcript with the kidnapping comment.

The quotes:

 

Let's pause for a moment to giggle at the PGA Tour taking an event to Mexico, away from the person who is campaigning on jobs and business being lost to...Mexico or Mexican immigrants.

Now, the serious (golf) issues at hand here:

--The PGA Tour has been going to Miami since at least 1961 and Doral was an important event before being turned into a WGC by Commissioner Tim Finchem. WGC's are costlier to sponsor and therefore prone to be moved, altered and stripped of identity.

--Trump has invested heavily into the resort and course with great results. While he may have intervened in course setup and may have been too high of a profile for the tour or sponsors, the event is seemingly is a great sponsorship opportunity due to its place on the schedule, the status of Trump Doral and the Miami market. Apparently the tour no longer can convince a sponsor of that.

--At a time the PGA Tour is considering opting out of its current TV deal with the networks, it is considering saddling a network with a WGC in a country other than the United States and one that only gives candidate Trump more fodder for one of his key campaign themes. I'm not sure how that creates leverage for the tour, only headaches.

--Instead of just letting the Doral event die and opening up a spot on the schedule, a replacement event is the goal because executive bonuses are tied to playing opportunities. Even when the playing opportunity might be in Mexico City!

--Finchem is possibly positioning the PGA Tour to become a focal point of the presidential campaign as he's preparing to opt-out of a television contract. A wiser commish less-focused on his golden parachute would have had the tour self-sponsor the event for a year to ride out the campaign.

Let the fun begin!

The Donald To Monty: "You Made Winning Majors Look Easy!"

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Enjoyable on so many levels...

 And the reply...

Speaking of Trump Turnberry, Iain Lowe has posted some stunning new aerials of the revamped course at his site.

" When Oscar De La Hoya says Donald Trump 'cheats in golf,' this is what he's talking about"

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There have been a few "I won't vote for Donald Trump because I've played golf with him" stories, but also one Lou Holtz endorsement because he loved the service at a Trump golf property. Politics is dirty business!

Still, Oscar De La Hoya sharing his golf story from a day with the presumptive nominee at Trump National Los Angeles--as written up by Lance Pugmire of the LA Times--is fun to visualize. I'm just teasing you with the punch line...hit the link for the full story.

“We get up there [to the green] and he’s like, ‘Oh, my ball’s right here!’ Three feet away. ‘And by the way, I’m going to pick it up, it’s a gimme,’” De La Hoya said.

“You don’t do that in golf,” De La Hoya said, adding there were no side games in play where money was exchanged.

“No money at all, how can I win?” De La Hoya said. “I’m not [voting] for someone who cheats in golf.”

Of course, another former President was known to fudge the mulligan rules. Oh, and his wife will be running for President against Trump. What a world.

DII School Bans Team From Trump National Doral; Coach Endorses The Donald

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Brentley Romine with the story of Division II Barry University barring its golf team from practicing at Trump Doral because the school's mission statement clashes with the campaign rhetoric of the resort's owner.

Forget your political views for a moment, and note that Trump Doral was providing some free golf to a Division II school. In an era when more and more clubs sadly close their doors to local college and high school teams, it's pretty impressive that a high end resort course was still providing some free golf to a Division II school.

Anyway, coach Jimmy Stobbs tells Romine that he has no opinion...well, not really...

“We were very appreciative of the opportunity to play on the outstanding courses that aided in the player development. Barry University administration has an issue with Mr. Trump that now affects the golf team in many ways.

“I will keep my opinion of the decision to myself, but for the record, my wife and I both voted for Mr. Trump in the Florida primary, and we will again in the general election.”

Early Photos Of Trump Turnberry Reveal Shocking Twist!

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Some of you may know I find the links golf move toward immaculately manicured jacuzzi bunkers to be a depressing evolution of seaside bunkering. Especially given what the old photographs show and the vitality of naturalness in links golf.

So imagine my shock and joy in seeing the first photos emerging from Trump Turnberry showing off the finished product. No more bathtub bunkers. Architects Mackenzie and Ebert deserve most of the credit, especially since they convinced The Donald to go this route.

Exciting stuff from Turnberry, which reopens soon and will be getting a full inspection from yours truly this July:


And click on the lower left photo to see the new par-3...

 

Video: Preview Of Real Sports Segment On Trump In Scotland

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And I had such high hopes for Alex Salmond and Donald Trump patching things up!

HBO's Bernard Goldberg heads back to Scotland to follow up on his reporting from a few years ago when everyone was a lot thinner and younger. What he finds appears to be a lot less enthusiasm for Trump.

The segment debuts Tuesday, April 19th.



The Donald Files: New Column Credits Scotland, Spieth Chokes

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As Dominic Hinde of The Washington Times notes, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is now writing a column for The Press and Journal in Aberdeen and in his opening effort, compared his fight to get Trump International Scotland build with his campaign.

Many Scots will be glad to know The Donald credits the Aberdeen fight with making him a stronger candidate.

I am also known as a great golf course developer, and since Scotland and golf go hand in hand, it is no surprise that I would be passionate about developing a golf course there.

I think what surprised people is just how passionate I was about it – it’s kind of like how I feel about America.

When I first arrived on the scene in Aberdeen, the people of Scotland were testing me to see just how serious I was – just like the citizens in the United States have done about my race for the White House.

I had to win them over – I had to convince them that I meant business and that I had their best interests in mind.

Well, Scotland has already been won – and so will the United States.

And he compared Jordan Spieth and Mitt Romney as chokers, notes Joel Beall.

Poll Claims 77% Will Avoid Trump Properties Out Of Protest

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Forbes' Erin Carlyle reports that 77% of 500 surveyed by Penn Schoen Berland would boycott Trump branded properties as a boycott over Donald Trump's campaign and possible Republican nomination.

The poll claims to have contacted folks earning over $200,000, and I'm struggling to believe that many people making that much money answered the phone. Nonethless, some numbers to keep an eye on.

Of these Trump-averse people, 77% said they would avoid Trump properties specifically to protest his campaign. They all agreed with this statement: “Over the course of his presidential campaign, I have found Donald Trump to be an unwelcome and generally negative addition to the political and social arenas – and by not patronizing his business I would be demonstrating my opposition.”

The survey respondents were fairly evenly divided in terms of political affiliation: 156 identified as Democrats, 172 Republicans, and 172 independents. A total of 257 were men; 243 were women. More than a third of the respondents said they have influence over their company’s travel and entertainment spending, suggesting that their opinions could have a broader effect.