During Friday’s “First Take” on ESPN2, co-host Stephen A. Smith reacted to the report that President-elect Donald Trump and Tiger Woods are going golfing together, saying it “comes off incredibly disingenuous” because it was made public beforehand.
“The fact that it’s something that’s been leaked and publicized just elevates the level of cynicism that should be accorded to the situation,” Smith stated. “Obviously, Trump got elected and there is no doubt that at least a segment of his constituency have expressed sentiments that, you know, vast communities in this country don’t find, aren’t too comfortable with. I’ll just leave it at that for now. So when you look at it from that perspective, it is one thing to talk to people. It is another thing to make sure they are seen, that people see them talking to you, that you are going about the business of ingratiating yourself with folks.”
“Tiger Woods, in fairness to him, he’s always golfed with presidents in the past. This is not new. We get that part, but for it to be something that’s advertised it just seems to be a bit orchestrated to say the least, and Tiger Woods, in my estimation, he should be careful about that. [If] you want to play golf with the man, play golf with the man. If people are taking pictures when it happens, so be it. But to announce it beforehand you are going to play against a number 500 and something ranked golfer in the world, even though he is Tiger Woods, or whatever the hell his ranking is at this particular moment in time, it just comes across as incredibly disingenuous, I will leave it at that,” he concluded.
Follow Trent Baker on Twitter @MagnifiTrent