Donald Trump was spotted at a party sponsored by LIV Golf in New York City on Wednesday night ahead of the league tournament at his New Jersey golf course, which begins Thursday.
Wearing a suit and shirt without his signature red tie, the former president was spotted in the crowd at Gotham Hall in Midtown as he watched rapper Nelly perform, shaking hands with Caitlyn Jenner and smiling alongside his wife Melania Trump .
Trump attended the celebrations despite having his scheduled round of golf Thursday with pro golfers Bryson DeChambeau and Dustin Johnson in the Pro-Am ahead of the first round of this week’s LIV Golf Invitational at his Trump National Golf Course in Bedminster, New Jersey.
Johnson and his wife, Paulina Gretsky, and LIV Golf Investments CEO Greg Norman, a retired professional golfer nicknamed “The Shark,” also made appearances at Wednesday night’s shindig.
Former First Lady Melania Trump joined her husband at the star-studded event. Via Getty Images
LIV Golf has been the subject of controversy for its involvement in the Saudi Arabian government amid reports of human rights abuses in the country. The company running the tour – which entered the professional golf world as an alternative to the US PGA Tour – is funded by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Funds.
Critics have accused Saudi Arabia of “washing down” its human rights atrocities through its involvement in LIV Golf and other sports.
Families of 9/11 victims have also devastated the circuit – especially as the tournament will be held less than 50 miles from where the Twin Towers once stood.
LIV Golf CEO and Commissioner Greg Norman welcomed Trump to the event. via Getty Images
US President Donald Trump speaks with team captain Dustin Johnson during the welcome party for the LIV Golf Invitational. via Getty Images
Fifteen of the 19 9/11 hijackers came from Saudi Arabia, and the FBI released hundreds of pages of newly declassified documents last year examining the connection between the Saudi government and the terrorist attacks.
Nonetheless, in recent days Trump has dismissed human rights concerns about Saudi Arabia while blasting the PGA Tour, which has banned players participating in LIV Golf from playing in its tournament.
“All these golfers who remain ‘loyal’ to the very disloyal PGA in all its various forms will pay a heavy price when the inevitable MERGER with LIV comes,” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social.
The winner of this week’s LIV Golf Invitational Series will be awarded $4 million out of a $25 million purse.
With mail wires