‘Bigger than the Ryder Cup!’ Donald Trump makes $1 million offer to Joe Biden

Has an election campaign in any country ever involved so much golf?

You may remember last month when, in some of the most bizarre scenes ever witnessed in a presidential debate – even by US political standards – Joe Biden and Donald Trump became embroiled in a back-and-forth about their handicaps that became so comical that it ended in US Open champ Bryson DeChambeau offering to host a match between the Oval Office candidates on his YouTube channel.

And Trump, who is looking to become just the second president to serve non-consecutive terms despite being the first to be impeached on more than one occasion, can’t seem to let it go.

Speaking to supporters at a rally at Trump National Doral Golf Club, the 78-year-old was in the middle of challenging his octogenarian rival to another debate – “this time it will be man-to-man, no moderators, no holds barred” – when he quickly came up with a better idea.

“‘Sleepy Joe’ declared he wanted to test his skills and stamina against mine on the golf course,” he told the Make America Great Again masses in Miami. “Can you believe this?”

Then, after mocking Biden’s golf swing to much uproar from the cheering mob, Trump added: “I’m also officially challenging ‘Crooked Joe’ to an 18-hole golf match right here on Doral’s Blue Monster, considered one of the greatest tournament golf courses anywhere in the world, one of the great courses of the world.”

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And he’s confident it would be a hit.

“It will be among the most-watched sporting events in history. Maybe bigger than the Ryder Cup or even the Masters.”

But that’s not all.

“And if he wins,” Trump continued. “I will give the charity of his choice one million dollars.”

Trump is even willing to put aside their handicap differences and offer Biden “ten strokes a half”.

“Ten strokes, that’s a lot,” he confirmed. “That means 20 strokes, in case you don’t play golf.”

Or know basic maths.

“But,” he said, “I’ll bet you he doesn’t take the offer, because Joe is all talk and no action.”

Biden, it seems, is not willing to take the bait.

Via his spokesperson, James Singer, the president said: “We’d challenge Donald Trump to create jobs, but he lost three million. We’d challenge Donald Trump to stand up to Vladimir Putin, but he bent the knee to him. We’d challenge Donald Trump to follow the law, but he breaks it. We’d challenge Donald Trump to not destroy our country, but that’s all his Project 2025 aims to do.”

Naturally, he couldn’t resist throwing in a golf pun – even if it is terrible.

“Joe Biden doesn’t have time for Donald Trump’s weird antics – he’s busy leading America and defending the free world,” the statement added. “Donald Trump is a liar, a convict, and a fraud only out for himself – par for the course.”

Alex Perry is the Associate Editor of bunkered. A journalist for more than 20 years, he has been a golf industry stalwart for the majority of his career and, in a five-year spell at ESPN, covered every sporting event you can think of. He completed his own Grand Slam at the 2023 Masters, having fallen in love with the sport at his hometown club of Okehampton and on the links of nearby Bude & North Cornwall.

Associate Editor