Former President Donald Trump claimed another win on the golf course at his Bedminster, New Jersey club. He announced what he described as his 43rd career club championship, securing victory with a score of 70. Despite his busy schedule, Trump noted his limited practice time and expressed pride in his achievement.

This golfing victory reignited scrutiny of Trump’s time on the golf links. Independent trackers estimate that his golf-related travel and security expenses have soared to nearly $115 million. The discussion around these costs has also revived comparisons to former President Barack Obama, whom Trump had criticized for spending time on the course during his tenure. Newsweek sought comments from the White House via email.

Trump and His Golfing Expenses

An independent tracker has assessed Trump’s expenses for golf-related activities at $114.97 million by August 3, primarily covering costs during his second term. “Is Trump Golfing Today?”, which tracks presidential plans using flight data and White House reports, confirms this figure. It spans $80.2 million for 59 days at Mar-a-Lago and West Palm Beach, $13.6 million for 34 days in Bedminster, New Jersey, $10 million for a five-day trip to Scotland, and $7 million for 47 days at a Washington-area course. Additional expenses are tied to Donald Trump’s visits to Jupiter, Florida.

The tracker bases these estimates on a 2019 Government Accountability Office report that analyzed Trump’s golf spending. Early first-term trips to Mar-a-Lago cost approximately $3.4 million each, mainly due to Air Force One travel, Coast Guard patrols, and C-17 cargo flights carrying his motorcade. The site’s independent methodology divides these estimates by an average trip length of 2.5 days to derive a daily cost. It suggests that the total expenses could increase by 20 to 40 percent, considering arrival, departure, and advance-team days.

Previous reports place Trump’s golf costs around $101.2 million as of late March, when he had golfed for 110 days in just over 14 months in office. Based on this rate, some calculated that Trump might spend about $300 million on golf-related activities by his second term’s conclusion. Beyond costs, watchdog groups monitor Trump’s frequent visits to his own properties since resuming office. Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) reported Trump made 259 total visits, including 148 to golf courses, spending 191 days—or 37 percent of his first 512 days—in office at properties he owns. Mar-a-Lago topped his visit list with 102 trips.

Comparing Trump and Obama’s Golfing

Trump’s golfing activities often draw comparisons to Obama’s, who played 333 rounds during two terms, equating to roughly 11.4 percent of his 2,922 days as president. “Is Trump Golfing Today?” finds Trump has used 20.05 percent of his first-term days and 26.4 percent of his second-term days for golfing.

Travel costs play a critical role in the comparison. Obama played most of his rounds at Joint Base Andrews near Washington, D.C., mitigating travel and security expenses. In contrast, Trump’s outings frequently involved visits to private clubs in Florida and New Jersey, incurring higher costs.

Comparative travel expenses for Obama face different parameters than Trump’s. “Is Trump Golfing Today?” approximated Obama’s total travel costs at $105 million over eight years, including international trips. Judicial Watch, using Secret Service records, calculated the Obama family’s personal travel costs at $105.7 million. Meanwhile, a 2016 McClatchy report estimated a lower $85 million based on earlier data.

Trump’s Criticisms of Obama’s Golfing

Trump criticized Obama’s golfing frequently, with 27 instances documented between 2011 and 2016 by SB Nation. During his 2015 campaign, he cited Obama playing 250 rounds of golf and promised voters he would not follow the same pattern if elected. “I’m going to be working for you,” he assured at a 2016 campaign stop, pledging to avoid golfing. However, by 2020, Trump had golfed more than Obama did over a similar period.

Trump’s social media often targeted Obama’s habit, focusing on his timing rather than his game total. Controversy peaked after Obama played at Martha’s Vineyard’s Farm Neck Golf Club on August 20, 2014, shortly after addressing the beheading of journalist James Foley by Islamic State militants. On Fox News’ “The Five,” co-host Greg Gutfeld commented on Obama’s golf, while co-host Eric Bolling advised a delay or cancellation.

For further information, Newsweek editors, Samantha Beech and Sam Wilson, can be contacted on this story.