A senior operator in the golf industry has become the first to effectively boycott Donald Trump’s Scottish golf course over its founder’s behaviour.
Kevin Munt, the consultant behind KMGC, who has worked with several UK golf venues on course and club management, has said his decision follows the recent BBC airing of the documentary You’ve Been Trumped, which highlighted some of the alleged antisocial and environmentally unfriendly tactics the billionaire deployed during the building of Trump International Golf Links.
“I do not believe that any golfer with a conscience, having watched You’ve been Trumped, could give the Trump organisation a £200 green fee and enjoy their round,” he said. “I have no intention of supporting Trump International Golf Links by remaining silent. As a person earning my living and reputation out of the game of golf I am not prepared to support golf at any cost. “The lack of respect, intimidation, bullying and total disregard for the welfare of his neighbours that Trump has shown in the name of golf development is sickening to me and should be to others who earn their living from this game.”
The film led to a huge response on social media. However, according to Munt, the golf industry has been quiet in the face of some of the accusations surrounding Trump’s development.
“What concerns me is the unusual silence from the golf industry and its press since the screening of the expose, which, given the controversial nature of this film, is somewhat disconcerting,” he said. “Other than the usual round of golf course reviews, written by golf journalists who have played the course on a PR freebie, I cannot find any industry comment on the film or its content. This lack of comment is disappointing as I cannot see how Donald Trump’s approach to the realisation of this project can have done anything but damage to the reputation of golf as a sport. A sport that I have spent most of my working life in and who’s reputation in the wider world I care a lot for.
“In the last 20 years, golf and its stewards have had to work very hard to prove its sound environmental and social credentials. What makes Trump’s aggressive approach to obtaining exclusivity even more polarised is that it is taking place in the home of golf, Scotland, where more than any other country in the world, the game is accessible to all.”
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