After English footballer Harry Kane scored a goal against Mexico in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, helping his team reach the quarter-finals, Donald Trump took to Truth Social to praise him. The president said that Kane is a “GREAT player!!!” Now, the footballer has returned the compliment on the eve of the quarter-final match against Norway.

“We played about 18 months ago. He invited me to play when I was down in Palm Beach,” Harry Kane said, as reported by The Telegraph’s Mike McGrath. “When the president invites you somewhere… it was a pretty surreal experience just to meet him and obviously play golf with him. His golf is pretty good. I hope I can play golf as good as him when I am his age, that’s for sure. So, a unique experience, I was just grateful that he invited me down to play with him.”

Kane was recalling playing with Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago, the private club owned by the president.

🤔 golf trivia

This Should Be an Easy One, Right?

01/10

Before 2026 Scottish Open, in Which Tournament Scheffler Last Missed the Cut?

2022 FedEx St. Jude Championship2023 Memorial Tournament2021 Players Championship2024 Genesis Scottish Open

Oops, bogey!

But don’t worry, there’s still the back 9 to prove your high golf IQ

PLAY GOLF TRIVIA

Trump has been a part of golf culture for decades. He owns and operates many golf properties and continues to invest significant time and political capital in the game while in office.

Trump has played with Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Hideki Matsuyama, Fred Funk, Bryson DeChambeau, and many others. Besides these golfers, he also played with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and NFL quarterback Kirk Cousins, among others.

Many of those who have played with POTUS have praised his golf skills. Rory McIlroy, for instance, played a round of 18 holes with him in 2017. After the round, he said that Trump scored 80 and “he’s a decent player for a guy in his 70s.”

Similarly, Bryson DeChambeau had nothing but praise after his game with Trump.

“He’s actually a really good golfer. He stripes it down the middle of the fairway and has good iron game and putts it pretty well.”

While it is not publicly known what Trump’s handicap is, analysts have described his swing as very effective. When The Independent asked someone to analyze his swing, he said that Donald Trump rotates amazingly, which helps him generate “great power.”

The analyst noted that many would see his swing as unconventional. And that’s because his backswing is flatter than most professionals’. But he adjusts that with his hip rotation. Put simply, the analyst said, “Considering his age, it’s a very good golf swing.”

Trump does not just play golf; he also manages many courses and revamps some of them. But that has gone against him.

Donald Trump faces backlash from local golfers

The Trump administration moved to take control of the three National Park Service‑owned public courses in Washington, D.C. They are East Potomac Golf Links, Langston Golf Course, and Rock Creek Park Golf. They operated under the nonprofit National Links Trust (NLT). NLT has had a 50-year lease since 2020 to maintain the courses.

On December 31, 2025, the Interior Department canceled NLT’s lease, citing alleged “defaults.” Donald Trump’s team then prepared to shut down East Potomac and redesign it. Reports suggest that the aim is to rebuild the course into a top-tier venue.

However, the DC Preservation League and two local golfers filed a federal lawsuit against the project. They sought an injunction to block the takeover and redesign of East Potomac. The argument was that the administration is sidestepping environmental and historic‑preservation laws that protect the park for public recreation.

Plaintiffs were pointing to the dumping of roughly 30,000 cubic yards of fill from the demolition of the White House East Wing ballroom onto East Potomac. Reports mentioned mud, rebar, plaster, wires, and other debris.