Kai Trump split the fairway on her controversial debut in a professional golf event just as assuredly as her grandfather divides opinion.
Yet after this nerveless start to a $3.25m tournament that has gripped the game because of her presence on a sponsor’s invitation, the 18-year-old amateur stumbled to a first-round 83, and last place in the 108-woman field.
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It sounds awful, but the 13-over beginning – which put her 19 shots off the lead and even four off the next worst score – was hardly a surprise considering Trump’s lowly ranking and inexperience. So credit to her for coping with her first-tee anxiety.
Not only were there big crowds at the Pelican Country Club in Tampa – swelled by a corps of security agents – but as the 461st-ranked junior in the United States, the teenager fresh out of high school went into action acutely aware that there was widespread criticism of her being invited to play with the best.
Trump was priced at 5,000-1 to win come Sunday, and yet it was glaringly obvious why she was in one of the LPGA’s most prestigious events: a social media following of more than eight million people, an elderly relative who is leading the free world and a golfer called Tiger Woods as the partner of her mother.
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Vanessa, the former wife of Donald Trump Jnr, was with Kai from the off and followed her around praying that the plea of Annika Sorenstam – after whom this event is called “The Annika” – was honoured. “Give this girl a chance,” Sorenstam had pleaded and indeed the reception was warm.
Observers at the course reported Trump’s threeball – also featuring former Women’s Open champion Hinako Shibuno and Germany’s Olivia Cowan – was the most watched on the layout.
Trump does not usually play at events of this standard – Getty Images/Julio Aguilar
Yet on social media there was inevitably vitriol when she missed the green from the middle of the first fairway. Her chip over the ridge was nicely controlled, but Trump missed the par putt on the par-four opener.
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Bogeys were the order of her first nine holes, but there were three pars, too, and she was hanging on in gallant fashion when she reached the turn on six over. She was smiling and enjoying herself and there were some fine shots, not least the second shot from on the 18th (her ninth hole after starting on the 10th), which cleared the water guarding the green.
After her opening shot, perhaps her gutsiest moment was on her penultimate hole when, after embarrassingly topping her drive, she hit her third to four feet to save par.
Trump’s scorecard featured seven pars, nine bogeys and two double-bogeys, but considering the fact that at one stage she was figuring out how to extricate herself from a tunnel beneath a grandstand, it could have been much, much worse. She is 12 shots off the cut line and, to be honest, that is not even a consideration. But she was smiling when she finished and it was a long way from the horror show for which some had imagined – and even hoped.
“I was definitely more nervous than I expected, but I thought I hit a lot of great shots out there,” Trump said afterwards. “I hit a lot of good shots just to the wrong spots. And obviously being my first LPGA event, now I kind of know how it goes. I felt a little out of order in the beginning, but I kind of got it going afterwards.
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“The whole time I was nervous without a doubt,” she added. “I thought I did pretty good for just first time, being the youngest player in the field. I had a great time out there.”
Why is Kai Trump’s presence controversial?
The granddaughter of Donald Trump, the US president, is not even rated in the top 450 juniors in the country and in her previous biggest tournament – the Sage Valley Junior in March – she finished 52-over for the four rounds, 22 strokes from the second-but-last competitor. Kai’s handicap is +0.5, which is exceptional for a club golfer, but pales in comparison to the pros, or even the elite amateurs.
For instance, England’s Lottie Woad was a +7.3 handicap when as the world No 1 amateur, she joined the paid ranks in the summer. That means that every time Woad played, she needed to play seven shots under par to play to her handicap. Kai needs to play to one-under.
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Why has she been invited then?
Purely and simply, exposure. Not just because of the identity of her grandfather – the president is a fanatical golfer who claims to have won 10s of club championships – but also because of her social-media reach. The teenager has more than eight million followers and none of the LPGA superstars can begin to boast as many.
Kai is a personable individual and earned rave reviews for her speech at the Republican National Congress last year, which announced her to the world at large. The female game is desperate for more publicity, despite the emergence of Nelly Korda, the US phenomenon who won seven times last year and other breakthrough stars such as England’s Charley Hull.
How did she receive an invitation?
When it was announced a few weeks ago, it was widely assumed that the eponymous hero of the $3.25m (£2.48m) tournament – Annika Sorenstam, considered one of the game’s greatest ever players – had wielded her influence. The Swede is a friend and self-confirmed admirer of the US president and even attended the White House to pick up an award, the day after the January 6 Capitol riot in 2021.
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But although Sorenstam is fully supportive of Trump Jnr’s entry, it was in fact Dan Doyle, the owner of the Pelican Country Club where the tournament is being played, who used the invite at his disposal.
There are three invites to amateurs in the 108-women field, with Anne-Sterre den Dunnen and Lauryn Nguyen the other two. The former is the highly rated college golfer from the Netherlands, while Nguyen is another top amateur. They are at a different level to Kai, but even their invites were criticised.
That is because The Annika does not have a regular Tour spot but is a hugely important tournament featuring the game’s best. It is the penultimate event of the LPGA Tour season, before next week’s $11m (£8.4m) finale.
So Trump’s invitation is just a gimmick to catch eyeballs then?
For the Tour, the sponsors and the course, unashamedly so. “Sponsor invitations are an important way to spotlight emerging talent and bring new attention to our tournaments and the LPGA,” Ricki Lasky, the LPGA’s chief operations officer, said. “Kai’s broad following and reach are helping introduce golf to new audiences – especially among younger fans. We’re excited to see her take this next step in her journey.”
Kai Trump’s grandfather Donald Trump is an extremely keen golfer – Instagram/Kai Trump
Kai is being courted by the sport’s top sponsors and already has her own apparel and lifestyle brand aimed at young women in sports. Clearly this outing will do her brand no harm, but there can be no question that this could also be a step towards her dream of becoming a successful pro. The work she must have put in on the range just to get this invite should not be underestimated.
Kai Trump also has a lifestyle brand
How did she get into golf?
It is obvious what and who inspired her to take up the game as a five-year-old. Her grandfather started acquiring courses in 1999 and the family’s portfolio now includes gems such as Turnberry, Doonbeg and Doral. She is the eldest daughter of Donald Trump Jnr, a keen golfer like his father, and grew up close to Trump National and Trump International, in Jupiter and West Palm Beach respectively. Indeed, she won the 2022 and 2024 Ladies’ Club Championships at the latter.
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She played in a PGA Tour Pro-Am earlier this year and has become a popular character on the circuit, attending the Ryder Cup with her grandfather in September and posting a blog of the experience which attracted more than three million views.
Not quite the five million views that her behind-the-scenes video from election night in 2024 attracted, but still a spectacular effort.
Does she have a chance of making it as a pro?
Rapid development is required if she is even to have a prayer but Kai has committed herself to the golf programme at Miami University, where she can undergo intensive tuition and training. And if she needs advice then not only does she have the most powerful man in the world in her corner – but also the most powerful golfer.
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Tiger Woods is dating her mother, Vanessa, who was divorced from Donald Jnr seven years ago. Woods met the former model at the gates of school where his children and Kai both attend. Like the president, Woods has given Kai advice for this tournament.
Kai Trump (left) arriving with Tiger Woods and her mother Vanessa (right) during The Genesis Invitational in February – Getty Images/Michael Owens
“He is the best golfer in the entire world but, I would say that!” she said in her press conference on Tuesday. “And he’s an even better person. He told me to go out there, have fun, go with the flow.
“And grandpa also pretty much told me to go out there and have fun. Just don’t get nervous. To me he’s just a normal grandpa. He’s not coming this weekend. He’s running the world right now, so a little busy.”
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How will she fare?
Consider that her odds are 750-1 to make the cut and that should tell you all you need to know. Kai’s aim must be to break 80 and, if at all possible, not to finish last. That would be a huge achievement. She has her friend Allan Kournikova as her caddie and as the younger brother of Anna, the former tennis player, he can attest to the abuse that a sports person can receive after daring to become more famous than their talent warrants. A backlash awaits, as Sorenstam acknowledged.
“I don’t think anybody here is thinking that she will be the one holding the trophy on Sunday,” Sorenstam said. “But this is about opportunities and memories and lessons learned. Saying that, I’ve never seen so many Secret Service people around here and yeah, obviously with her background, I just don’t know how she does it honestly. To be 18 and hear all the comments, she must be super tough. I’m sure we can all relate what it’s like to get criticism here and there, but she gets it a thousand times.
“So that’s why I just want to give her a break, come out here and have fun. We want her to feel like family here and to feel welcome. I mean, give this girl a chance, right?”
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