A putter once owned by Shinzo Abe, the late former Japanese prime minister, became the symbol of the first official meeting between the new leader, Sanae Takaichi, and Donald Trump. A gift that goes far beyond its sporting value. That tribute speaks to a passion for golf, which for Abe was also a diplomatic tool capable of building bridges.
The club wasn't the only gift The Donald received. Her Japanese colleague also presented the US president with a gold-leafed golf ball and a bag autographed by Hideki Matsuyama, the only Japanese player to win the Augusta Masters. Sport as diplomacy, then, once again. Golf united Abe and Trump: the two transformed their challenges on the green into opportunities for dialogue and understanding, helping to strengthen the alliance between Tokyo and Washington.
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Shinzo Abe didn't consider golf just a hobby, but a tool of informal diplomacy. He believed that a game on the green could say more than many official meetings. Drivers and putters required concentration, respect, patience, and the ability to read the coursefor him, these were essential qualities, even in politics. With Trump, the fairway became a place of friendship and negotiation, in a personal relationship that the Japanese leader naturally cultivated.
Today, Sanae Takaichi, the first woman to lead Japan and considered Abe's political heir, wanted to evoke precisely that spirit. In her meeting with the golfer-in-chief in Tokyo, she explicitly recalled the American president's "enduring friendship" with Abe. She then also recalled the welcome he gave to his widow, Akie, at his Mar-a-Lago residence.
It's no coincidence that among the gifts were two caps signed by both leaders, with the words "Japan is back." This is the slogan Abe used to mark Japan's return to the global stage.
For Takaichi, who doesn't share the same passion for golf but understands its symbolic value, choosing to start over with a putter is a way to rekindle the thread of friendship that Abe had woven with his swing.
