Man in the crowd: “We love you, Mr. President!”

President Trump: “I love you too!”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fmlcrCfbefQ

BEDMINSTER, N.J. — Lexi Thompson, at No. 3 the highest-ranked American in the women’s world rankings, was preparing to hit her third shot, from just off the green, on the par-5 15th hole at Trump National Golf Club when she noticed that most of the fans in her gallery had their backs turned to her.

Thompson knew that could mean only one thing — her occasional recreational playing partner in South Florida, President Trump, had arrived at the United States Women’s Open and made his way to the makeshift fishbowl of a suite erected for him on the course, which he owns.

With the president watching from his perch a few yards away, Thompson said, she rushed her chip using a hybrid club. Trump, she said, is a reliably fast player, so he no doubt applauded her quickness, if not the result. Her ball came to rest more than 10 feet from the pin, and she two-putted for a par that felt like a bogey given how well she had hit her first two shots.

“I didn’t hit the best shot in front of him,” Thompson said with a laugh after signing for an even-par 72 in the second round.

She added: “I had heard he was coming to the course today. I tried not to focus on it too much.”