President Donald Trump attended the final round of LIV Golf New York at Trump National Golf Club Bedminster on Sunday, August 9, where he was photographed driving a golf cart with golf legend Gary Player.
Later that day, Trump posted a modified version of a photograph of the pair on Truth Social with the caption, “With the great Gary Player, today, at Bedminster!” Journalists and social media users soon compared it with the original photograph published by Getty Images.
The versions contained noticeable differences in Trump’s appearance, prompting online criticism and questions about how extensively the photograph had been edited. Current reporting does not establish whether the changes were created with generative AI or other digital editing tools.
What happened at Bedminster
Trump attended the weekend rounds of LIV Golf New York at Trump National Golf Club Bedminster. On Sunday, he appeared with Gary Player and Yasir Al-Rumayyan, governor of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.
Al-Rumayyan’s appearance came months after PIF announced that it would end its financial backing of LIV Golf after the 2026 season. The fund had invested more than $5 billion in the league since its 2022 launch.
Before Sunday’s final round, Trump addressed a group in the player-dining area and praised Player’s career, placing him alongside Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods among golf’s greatest players.
Trump’s edited photo goes viral
Trump posted a photograph of himself with Player on Truth Social on August 9, writing, “With the great Gary Player, today, at Bedminster!”
The version Trump posted differed noticeably from the original Getty image. His appearance was smoother, slimmer, and more youthful, while Player appeared largely unchanged.
Critics circulated comparisons of the 2 versions on social media and questioned the alterations. Neither Trump nor the post disclosed how the photograph had been edited, and current reporting does not establish whether generative AI or another editing process was used.
Commentators break down the edits
Political commentator Harry Sisson posted a video criticizing the photograph and argued that Trump was presenting a younger-looking version of himself.
Reports comparing the images identified several differences, including smoother skin, changes to the logo on Trump’s shirt, and a blurred, painting-like background.
Sisson also acknowledged that he could not determine whether the photograph had been generated with AI or whether an authentic image had been heavily altered with filters. Other Trump critics also shared side-by-side comparisons online.
Comparing the real and fake images
The original photograph was taken by freelance photographer Andrew Mordzynski and published through Getty Images. It showed the 80-year-old Trump driving a golf cart with Gary Player at Bedminster.
In Trump’s edited version, his chest area appeared smoother, apparent sweat near his forehead was removed, and the logo on his shirt changed from a square patch to more prominent standalone lettering.
The player, who is 90, appeared largely unchanged apart from a more tanned appearance. The World Golf Hall of Fame credits Player with 9 major championships and the career Grand Slam.
Fun fact: Gary Player, nicknamed The Black Knight, is one of only six golfers in history to complete the career Grand Slam.
This is not Trump’s first AI photo
This was not Trump’s first brush with an artificial intelligence controversy, as he has previously shared several digitally altered images that drew sharp public criticism from both loyal supporters and political opponents across many platforms.
Earlier posts included an edited photo of his young grandson that made the child look like a tiny version of Trump himself, prompting amusement and genuine concern among many online commentators closely watching the trend.
Trump has also shared other exaggerated digital images before, suggesting a clear ongoing pattern of using flattering or dramatic edits rather than posting straightforward, honestly unedited photographs of himself, his family, and his daily events.
Fun fact: LIV Golf used a 54-hole, three-round format with shotgun starts from its 2022 launch, then switched to a 72-hole, four-round schedule starting with the 2026 season.
How viewers spotted the edits fast
Internet users today are increasingly skilled at spotting artificial intelligence edits, noticing blurred backgrounds, unnaturally smooth skin, strange lighting, and tiny details that seem far too perfect for a casual outdoor golf course setting.
In this particular photo, the background had a warm, artificial glow, while both men’s skin had lost its natural texture entirely, missing the pores and small imperfections clearly visible in unedited, ordinary photographs taken that same afternoon.
These visual clues, once fairly subtle and easy to miss, have become much easier for casual social media users to identify quickly, fueling faster and wider mockery whenever a public figure shares an edited image.
Health speculation surrounds the president
The photo controversy quickly reignited ongoing speculation about the president’s health, with observers noting visible bruising on his hands and slight swelling that appeared completely absent from the smoothed, heavily edited picture shared publicly online.
Trump has previously attributed similar bruising to his daily aspirin regimen, a common blood thinner that can cause skin discoloration, though pointed questions from critics and reporters have persisted regardless of these repeated explanations offered.
Commentators argued that removing visible bruises and blemishes from the photo only fueled further public curiosity about the president’s actual physical condition, rather than putting any lingering health concerns to rest once and for all.
What this means for public trust
Moments like this raise broader questions about honesty in political communication, especially when leaders share digitally altered images and present them publicly as genuine, completely unedited, real-time photographs of themselves and their daily activities.
Trust in official imagery matters a great deal, since altered photos can gradually shape public perception of a leader’s true age, health, or energy levels in ways that simply do not reflect daily reality.
As artificial intelligence tools become easier for absolutely anyone to use, similar controversies involving public figures editing their own images are very likely to keep happening much more frequently in the coming months.
TL;DR
- Trump posted an edited photograph of himself with Gary Player from LIV Golf New York at Bedminster.
- The modified image made Trump appear smoother, slimmer, and more youthful than in the original Getty photograph.
- Harry Sisson and other Trump critics shared comparisons and questioned why the photograph had been altered.
- Separate photographs from the Bedminster weekend showed bruising on Trump’s forearms and bandages on several fingers, details that were not visible in the edited image.
- Current reporting has not established whether the photograph was altered with generative AI or another digital editing process.
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This article was made with AI assistance and human editing.
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