Donald Trump ‘Carries High-Powered Rifles With His Clubs’ When Playing Golf

Donald Trump reportedly carries high-powered rifles in his golfing bag when he hits the green for a round of golf.

The President is said to have carried rifles alongside his golf clubs in a bag in his trailing cart during a trip to Trump International Golf Course in Florida over the weekend.

According to Palm Beach Daily News, Mr Trump was accompanied by several Secret Service agents who rode both in front, beside and behind the President.

“Hey Dan, see anything strange about those clubs in the back?” one lunch guest inside the club room asked another, gesturing through the window to a golf bag in the trailing cart.

The guest responded: “Sure do. They have triggers.”

“Yep, high-powered rifles nestled in there – just in case, heaven forbid, they are needed – with the woods and the irons and probably one of those little stubby pencils,” reported the local Florida paper.

Mr Trump was spotting playing golf at the West Palm Beach course in the sunshine state of Florida for two days in a row over the weekend. This is the 16th visit the billionaire president has made to one of his eponymous golf courses since entering the White House just over 11 weeks ago.

Barack Obama, whom Mr Trump regularly rebuked for his golfing habits, waited months before playing golf during his tenure. While his predecessor’s first documented golf outing was just shy of 100 days into his presidency, Mr Trump is only 80 days into his term and has already been busy hitting the green.

The below chart, created for The Independent by statistics agency Statista, shows how Mr Trump’s time spent golfing compares with that of previous American presidents.

In one of his many barbed attacks, Mr Trump took aim at President Obama for hitting the green in 2013 when he was considering striking Syria for its use of chemical weapons. Mr Trump argued he should have been conferring with lawmakers instead.

“Pres Obama is not busy talking to Congress about Syria.. he is playing golf …  Go figure,” he wrote on Twitter.

During last year’s presidential campaign, Mr Trump said he would not have time to go golfing if elected.

“I’m going to be working for you. I’m not going to have time to go play golf,” he said in August 2016.

In the same year, he told a rally: “You know what – and I love golf – but if I were in the White House, I don’t think I’d ever see Turnberry again, I don’t think I’d ever see Doral again, I own Doral in Miami, I don’t think I’d ever see many of the places that I have.

“I don’t ever think that I’d see anything, I just wanna stay in the White House and work my ass off, make great deals, right? Who’s gonna leave? I mean, who’s gonna leave?”

Mr Trump has hit the green with the likes of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and champion professionals Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods since taking office.