Donald Trump has revealed Tiger Woods informed him that he had begun dating his son’s ex-wife before making the relationship public.
The US president gave the budding romance his blessing, despite suggesting Vanessa Trump had only split with his son, Donald Jnr, because of a “witch hunt” into the alleged involvement of Russia in his own 2016 election.
“I love Tiger and I love Vanessa,” Trump told reporters from the Oval Office on Monday as he revealed his reaction to the relationship.
“Tiger actually called me a few months ago. I have a special, very good relationship with Tiger. I played golf with him a couple of times over the past month and he’s a fantastic guy and a fantastic athlete. He told me about it and I said, ‘Tiger, that’s good’. I’m very happy for both. Just let both of them be happy.”
Trump claims ‘Russia witch hunt’ led to son’s divorce from Vanessa
Touching on the breakdown of the marriage between his son and daughter-in-law, he added: “They had a great relationship. I happen to think the relationship with my son was hurt very badly by the witch hunt. ‘Russia, Russia, Russia’. All the c— they put Don through, who knew nothing about it.
“Vanessa and Don had a great relationship, they have five incredible children – all good athletes, all great students. They broke up quite a while ago, which to me was very sad because I think they’re both great.”
Woods and Vanessa, who live 20 minutes apart in Florida, have reportedly been together since at least November. The golfer went public with their relationship last month by sharing photographs of the couple along with the caption: “Love is in the air and life is better with you by my side.”
Donald Jnr and Vanessa announced they were splitting in March 2018 in a statement that read: “After 12 years of marriage, we have decided to go our separate ways. We will always have tremendous respect for each other and our families. We have five beautiful children together and they remain our top priority. We ask for your privacy during this time.”
According to the New York Times, the final straw in their marriage was a feared assassination attempt the previous month.
Vanessa and mother, Bonnie Haydon, were hospitalised as a safeguard after they encountered an envelope addressed to Donald Jnr filled with a mysterious white substance officials later confirmed had been cornstarch.
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