Trump's Golf Scores Were Apparently Hacked To Make Him Look Like A Bad Golfer

Someone has been hacking an American political leader again, but this time it's not to influence elections. Rather it's all about golf scores. Yes, someone hacked President Trump's golf scores on the website the Golf Handicap and Information Network (GHIN) to raise his handicap, which would make him look like a worse golfer, CNN reports.

"We have become aware of reports in the media questioning recent scores posted on President Trump's GHIN account," United States Golf Association (USGA) spokesperson Janeen Driscoll said in a statement obtained by CNN. "As we dug into the data it appears someone has erroneously posted a number of scores on behalf of the GHIN user. We are taking corrective action to remove the scores and partnering with our allied golf associations and their member clubs to determine the origin of the issue."

According to CNN, the scores that were added were 101, 100, 108, and 102. They have since been deleted, the news channel said. GHIN belongs to the USGA and tracks the scores of some of the best golfers in the country. CNN reported that Trump's scores before the hack put him in the top 4% of golfers in the country with a handicap of 1.8.

The Post reported that Trump's scores were generally in the 70s and 80s before the hack. Some have said that the president's golf game is not that good, and another score was also removed from the site — a 68, his personal best. Golfweek reported that it was not clear whether that good score was truly his or not.

According to Golfweek, the scores were added at a few different courses. At Trump National New York, the 100 and 101 scores were added; at Trump International in West Palm Beach, the 108; and at the Cochise Course at Desert Mountain in Scottsdale, Arizona, the 102. The only other score that was posted since Trump's election was a 96 in October 2018, Golfweek reported, even though the president has reportedly played as many as 130 rounds since arriving in the White House.

Trump's golf acumen has been criticized most notably by Rick Reilly in his book Commander in Cheat: How Golf Explains Trump. Other sources, though, have lauded him for his skills. Golf Digest noted that Trump's handicap index in February was 2.8 and ranked him the best golfing president in recent U.S. history. The golf publication also said he had won 19 club championships — all at Trump-owned golf courses, according to Golf Digest.

In 2017, golf journalist Jaime Diaz wrote about his experience playing with Trump in 2013 and 2014. "Both our rounds came during openings of redesigns to his courses and were played casually, with plenty of putts inside five feet over-generously slapped away," Diaz wrote. "But I certainly didn't get the feeling that Trump shoots in the 70s only because he doesn't putt the short ones. His ball-striking, from medium-length tees, made him a legitimate 4-handicap at the time."

Following the hacking scandal, Trump's record is even more up in the air. How much time he dedicates to the sport, however, is not. He was at his course in Virginia on Saturday as this news broke.