U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom Robert Wood "Woody" Johnson IV told multiple colleagues at the U.S. Embassy in London that President Donald Trump had asked him to see if the British government could help get the British Open to play at his Turnberry golf course in Scotland, a former State Department official with firsthand knowledge told NBC News.
The former official said the ambassador’s deputy twice told him not to make the request because it would be unethical, but that Johnson raised the issue with the British official responsible for Scotland during a 2018 meeting anyway.
The former official added that it was a waste of political capital because the British government has "zero influence" on where the Open is played, a decision that lies with the British equivalent of the PGA.
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