US and Japanese leaders joined by world No 4 Hideki Matsuyama for nine holes as Abe pushes nations’ ‘unshakeable’ alliance
Donald Trump managed to stay out of the diplomatic rough on the first leg of his five-nation visit to Asia. Whether or not he repeated the feat during an afternoon round of golf with Japan’s prime minister, Shinzo Abe, on Sunday is less clear.
The leaders were joined at the Kasumigaseki country club – no longer a bastion of sexism – by Japan’s best professional golfer, Hideki Matsuyama, but did not keep score, according to officials, and the media were not privy to their exertions on the fairways.
After embarking on their golf diplomacy, accompanied by Ernie Els, in Palm Beach earlier this year, Trump and Abe were at pains to put on a united front, putting to one side potential hazards lying in wait for the president in South Korea, China and South-east Asia.
From the moment Trump arrived at Yokota airbase, Abe pushed the symbolism behind their countries’ “unshakeable” alliance, and went out of his way to accommodate his picky guest. Sushi was kept off the lunch menu, Trump having given a colourful verdict on the Japanese dish in the book Lost Tycoon: The Many Lives of Donald J Trump. Instead, they dined on hamburgers – made with American beef – accompanied by what looked like glasses of cola.
They held up white baseball caps bearing the message “Donald and Shinzo Make Alliance Even Greater” a clear nod to Trump’s 2016 campaign slogan. There was only one slightly awkward moment – a clumsy fist-bump at the start of their nine holes of golf.
