Venezuelan pro golfer Jhonattan Vegas weighs in after Trump orders large scale strike
President Donald Trump ordered a “large-scale strike” against Venezuela to capture its leader and transport him to the United States, where his administration plans to put him on trial.The US Army’s Delta Force, an elite special operations unit, led the operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, a US official briefed on the matter told Fox News.The operation has drawn reactions from those in the political arena as well as sports figures with close ties to Venezuela.Jhonattan Vegas, a Venezuelan golfer who competes on the PGA Tour, appeared to react to the events.“Long live Venezuela, DAMN IT ALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL” (sic), Vegas wrote on X in a post translated from Spanish.Vegas, 41, is ranked No.85 in the world.
He had a historic run at the 2025 PGA Championship, becoming the first Venezuelan to take the lead at one of the four major tournaments. Vegas finished 8-under par after the first 36 holes, placing him atop the leaderboard at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, North Carolina, in May.He ultimately finished the major in a tie for fifth place.Vegas first took an interest in golf when he was just two years old.“As a kid, I would hit anything that I could find.Rocks, broomstick, everything,” he told reporters after the opening round of last year’s PGA Championship.
“I would grab anything that I could swing and I would do it.Feel like I was a good athlete as a young kid, so that’s kind of how things started.“We grew up near a nine-hole golf course owned by the oil companies, and we had access to a course and, plus the love of my dad for the game, put it together, and we started playing.”Once he reached his teens, Vegas left Venezuela and relocated to the US.He learned English and later took his golf talents to the Texas Longhorns.Vegas further cemented his name in history when he won the Bob Hope Classic in 2011, making him the first Venezuelan to win a PGA Tour-sanctioned event.He also represented his native country twic...