In the aftermath of former U.S. President Donald Trump's assassination attempt on July 13, 2024, videos and photos circulated on social media purporting to show him healed enough to go golfing the following day.
One post , which included a video supposedly showing Trump getting into a golf cart, read: "Trump mourns his dead followers by playing golf." The footage had this overlay caption: "Gets nearly assassinated yesterday, golfs today."
Similar claims appeared elsewhere on X , and on Threads , Instagram , and TikTok . They featured various photos or videos supposedly showing Trump on a golf course. One version of the claim featured alleged testimony by someone who claimed to be an employee of New Jersey's Trump National Golf Club Bedminster and supposedly witnessed Trump golfing there on July 14. (We elaborate on that purported anecdote below.)
According to reputable news sources , it was true that, in the hours after the shooting, the former president went to the club . He reportedly stayed there overnight and for a portion of the following day , July 14. Furthermore, citing an alleged email to the club's members, POLITICO reported the club was closed the day after the shooting:
Trump National Golf Club Bedminster announced it is closed today, according to an email that went out to members this morning and was obtained by POLITICO. Trump and his team traveled to New Jersey after the apparent assassination attempt last night in Pennsylvania.
Trump, according to someone who spoke on the phone with him, did not sound shaken up and was doing well. No announcements have been made about when the former president will leave Bedminster for the convention in Milwaukee.
We reached out to the club to confirm the closure, and to ask under what circumstances it had purportedly occurred. We also asked whether Trump went golfing during his visit. We will update this report when, or if, we receive a response.
Snopes also reached out to the Trump campaign to ask if he went golfing on July 14. No one has returned our inquiry so far.
In other words, there was no credible evidence to confirm, nor debunk, the claim that Trump played golf the day after his attempted assassination at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. Many photos and videos that supposedly showed the outing on July 14 were actually taken on an earlier date or their origins were unknown. Furthermore, no reputable news outlet said he was spotted golfing — which, if it had actually happened, would be newsworthy.
Let us note here: On July 14, Sen. Lindsey Graham told NBC journalists he and the former president had plans to go golfing that morning — a statement that implied they did not do it. Referring to Trump, Graham said: "We were supposed to play golf this morning today, at 8.30. [...] He was excited about playing golf, he thought he had something that could help my swing."
These Social Media Posts Claim to be Evidence of Trump Golfing
Among numerous social media posts with the claim was an image purportedly showing a Reddit post authored by someone who claimed to be "a cart boy at Trump Bedminster." One X post with the image, for instance, amassed more than 3.3 million views, as of this writing.
The alleged Reddit post claimed:
I'm a cart boy at Trump Bedminster, where Trump played today (just about 16 hours after getting nearly assassinated). He was in high spirits, which was great. Took time to chat with a lot of the staff. Allowed us to follow him for a bit. There was a decently big group with him. Anyway, I was able to watch him putt on the 9th green. He had about a 20 footer, with probably 2 feet of break. Sure enough, he drains it and goes "Difference between me and the shooter is that I don't miss!"
Legend
To determine the story's legitimacy, we searched for the alleged post on the in-question subreddit (r/golf). We did not find it. It was possibly deleted, or it never existed in the first place. (In other words, it was possible the image with the purported Reddit post was a digital creation.)
In sum, the story about the alleged Bedminster employee watching Trump "putt on the 9th green" on July 14 was unsubstantiated.
Meanwhile, high-profile politicians and media pundits, including U.S. Sen. Mike Lee and Laura Loomer , shared the above-mentioned video that supposedly showed Trump on a golf course the day after the shooting.
(X account @BasedMikeLee)
Much was unknown about that footage, including whether it actually showed Trump and when it was taken. The TikTok account that originally uploaded ( archived ) the video on July 14 no longer existed , as of this writing. The video's original description on TikTok read, "Mr. Trump! #trump #donaldtrump #usa #america #makeamericagreatagain." There was no indication it was captured the day after his assassination attempt.
A few X users shared alleged screenshots of the TikTok account saying in comments that the video was not recorded on July 14. But, because the account no longer existed and those comments did not display in the archived version of the video (likely because they were posted after the video was archived), we were unable to verify those purported comment threads.
That said, as the video spread, Lee and Loomer stated the video was not captured on July 14 in follow-up posts. "Okay I'm now told this video was uploaded today but *not* taken today. My bad," Lee wrote on X. "This video is not from today. President Trump did not golf today. This is an old video," Loomer wrote.
Without citing specific evidence, she claimed on X she "can 100% confirm [Trump] didn't play golf" on July 14:
Not sure why so many people are posting posts saying President Trump played golf today, but I can 100% confirm he didn't play golf today. Anyone saying that he did is pushing misinformation. Donald Trump flew to Milwaukee today from New Jersey and it was raining in New Jersey. The videos of him on the golf course are old.
Photos supposedly documenting Trump golfing after the shooting circulated, as well. For instance, a 2022 photo of Trump riding a golf cart was misleadingly captioned , "Imagine getting shot at 7pm and still making your 9am tee time."
Other fact-checking organizations, including Reuters and PolitiFact , also debunked that photo's alleged backstory, concluding that it remained "unclear whether Trump played golf during the weekend."
Another image purportedly showing Trump with his golf club on July 14 originated from a video that was available online since at least April 27, 2024 — weeks before the attempted assassination.
(X account @jmmohr)
In sum, there was no reliable photographic or video evidence of Trump golfing the day after his attempted assassination, and no reputable news outlet corroborated the social media gossip about him doing so. After his time at the New Jersey club, he traveled to Wisconsin for the Republican National Convention.
Snopes has investigated several other rumors surrounding the attempted assassination of Trump :
Sources:
Cohen, Rebecca. "Trump Spotted at His Virginia Golf Course after Video of Him on a Flight to the DC Area Sparked a Firestorm of Speculation." Business Insider, https://www.businessinsider.com/donald-trump-virginia-golf-course-video-flight-dc-2022-9 . Accessed 16 July 2024.
"Fact Check: Image Shows Trump Driving Golf Cart in 2022, Not after 2024 Shooting." Reuters, 16 July 2024. www.reuters.com, https://www.reuters.com/fact-check/image-shows-trump-driving-golf-cart-2022-not-after-2024-shooting-2024-07-16/ .
Izzo, Jack. "CNN Published Headline 'Secret Service Rushes Trump Off Stage After He Falls at Rally'?" Snopes, 15 July 2024, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/cnn-trump-falls-headline/ .
Kasprak, Alex. "Rumor That Shards of Glass, Not Bullet, Injured Trump in Assassination Attempt Is False." Snopes, 15 July 2024, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/bullet-glass-trump-wound/ .
---. "Trump Shooter Once Donated Money to a Democratic Cause?" Snopes, 15 July 2024, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/trump-shooter-donation/ .
Rascouët-Paz, Anna. "4chan Poster Was Police Sniper at Site of Trump Assassination Attempt?" Snopes, 15 July 2024, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/jonathan-willis-sniper-trump/ .
Swann, Sara. "No, This Photo Doesn't Show Trump Golfing after Being Shot." @politifact, https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2024/jul/16/instagram-posts/no-this-photo-doesnt-show-trump-golfing-after-assa/ . Accessed 17 July 2024.
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