Trump in the rough over late golf returns

He may be nominally in charge of the world’s largest economy – stock market crashes notwithstanding – but an update at Companies House reveals Donald Trump is failing to keep on top of the paperwork at Golf Recreation Scotland, through which he owns his course Trump Turnberry.

Newly filed paperwork revealed that a compulsory strike-off notice has been issued against the firm, which is controlled by eldest son Donald Trump Jnr and directed by second son Eric, listed as “Executive VP, The Trump Organisation”. The strike-off notice – a formal notification from Companies House to a company that it’s at risk of being struck off – dated April 29, had been issued over an overdue confirmation statement which should have been filed by February 25.

Golf Recreation Scotland was set up in 2014 and returned a £3.8m pre-tax profit on £21.1m in sales in 2023. It is the parent company of SLC Turnberry and its activities are reported in its accounts as “the operation of Trump Turnberry, a luxury golf resort in Ayrshire, Scotland, including hotel rooms, two championship golf courses, conference and meeting rooms, restaurants, retail and spa facility”.

President Trump was a director between 2014 and 2017. The ultimate controlling party is registered in the 2023 accounts as The Donald J Trump Revocable Trust, a Florida state grantor trust (a trust where the person who creates it is treated as the owner of the trust’s assets for tax purposes) registered in the US state which also owns a large stake in Trump Media – his social network, according to stock market filings in America.

Any striking-off would put an end to one of Trump’s keenest desires and something he has bent the ears of successive British prime ministers over – for the course to stage the Open for the first time since 2009. Trump has spent £200m upgrading the resort since buying it in 2014 but the R&A has repeatedly overlooked it as a host, fearing its owner’s antics would overshadow the event.

In an 19th hole update, Trump finally pulled his finger out and belatedly updated his company’s records on Thursday night UK time, filing his overdue confirmation statement and also identifying himself as someone with “significant influence or control over the trustees of a trust”. Sons Eric and Donald retain their roles, pending any changes.