The PGA of America cut ties with President Trump when it voted on Sunday to move the PGA Championship event away from its New Jersey golf course next year.
The vote comes four days after the Trump-fueled riot in the Capitol, when Congress certified President-elect Joe Biden’s election victory. This is the second time in just over five years that the PGA of America has removed one of its events from a Trump course.
PGA President Jim Richerson says the board has voted to exercise its right to “end the deal” with Trump National in Bedminster, New Jersey.
“We are in a political situation that we have not created,” said Seth Waugh, the CEO of the PGA of America, in a telephone interview. “We are fiduciaries for our members, for the game, for our mission and for our brand. And how can we best protect that? Given Wednesday’s tragic events, our feeling was that we could no longer hold it in Bedminster. The damage could have been irreparable. The only real course of action was to leave. “
The PGA of America, which has some 29,000 golf professionals who primarily teach, signed the deal with Trump National in 2014.
It canceled the 2015 PGA Grand Slam of Golf at the Trump National Los Angeles Golf Club after Mr. Trump’s scornful remarks about Mexican immigrants when he announced he was seeking the Republican nomination for president. The event was finally canceled the following spring.
Wednesday’s shocking uprising left the country unsettled, and attention in golf circles quickly turned to whether the PGA of America would keep its first championship – and one of golf’s four major championships – on Mr.
“Our decision was not about speed and timing,” said Waugh. “Most important to our governance and leadership is to protect our brand and reputation, and the ability of our members to lead the growth of the game, which they do through so many powerful programs in their community.”
The Trump organization said in a statement that they “have a wonderful partnership with America’s PGA and are incredibly disappointed with their decision.”
“This is a violation of a binding contract and they have no right to terminate the agreement,” the statement said. “As an organization, we have invested many, many millions of dollars in the 2022 PGA Championship at Trump National Golf Club, Bedminster. We will continue to promote golf at every level and focus on operating the best golf courses around the world. world.”
Waugh declined to say whether the PGA of America expected legal challenges from the Trump organization.
Trump had made a speech to his supporters repeatedly making unfounded claims that the election had been stolen from him, urging them to “fight.”
They stormed the Capitol while lawmakers were certifying Mr. Biden’s victory. After forcing their way in, the violent mob looted the building and sacked terrified staff and lawmakers. Five people, including a Capitol police officer, died.
An ABC News / Ipsos poll released on Sunday found that 67% of respondents said Trump deserves a “good amount” or “big chunk” of debt for the uprising.
“This is not because of the pressure we feel. We are not forced to make a decision,” said Waugh. “We had to make a business decision. It’s a permanent institution. My job is to deliver it better than when I found it. A hundred years from now, we still want to be alive.”
The PGA of America, which is separate from the PGA Tour and its weekly tournaments, previously held the Senior PGA Championship at Mr. Trump outside of Washington. That was the same year that the USGA hosted the US Women’s Open at Mr. Trump National in Bedminster.
Mr. Trump also owns Turnberry in Scotland, one of the most picturesque links in the British Open rotation, best known for the “Duel in Sun” between Tom Watson and Jack Nicklaus in 1977, and most recently Stewart Cink who made a 59-year-old Watson in 2009. The R&A, which determines the British Open rotation, has not returned to Turnberry since Mr Trump took over.
He also owns Trump Doral outside of Miami, a venerable stop on the PGA Tour schedule for years and most recently a World Golf Championship site. Mr. Trump’s presence made it difficult to find a corporate sponsor and the tournament moved to Mexico in 2017.
Waugh said America’s PGA already had a team in New Jersey to begin selling the events to the public and providing local sponsorship. Now it’s about finding a place to play the PGA Championship, which dates back to 1916, next year.
The PGA is on Kiawah Island in South Carolina this May.
“We’ve already reached a number of places,” Waugh said. “We think we have a lot of options.”