Inside Donald Trump’s Billion-Dollar Golf Empire

Forbes Daily Briefing · Jul 9, 2026 · 6m

Donald Trump has a long history of embellishment around his success as a businessman, for years lobbying Forbes to pump up its estimates of his net worth—occasionally while using the name John Barron, a persona he invented—and even outright lying about the size of his penthouse and other properties. And when it comes to his portfolio of golf courses, Trump can stretch the truth like a par-5. Legal documents reveal that Trump has improperly tallied sunk costs, overvalued land and undervalued his membership liabilities—deposits he would have to return to his courses’ golfers if they leave the…