The plan to host the Aramco Team Series at Trump Golf Links at Ferry Point in the Bronx comes after New York’s attempt to void Trump’s contract to run the course was rejected by a judge in April. Former Mayor Bill de Blasio said shortly after Trump supporters invaded the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, that he was canceling Trump’s contracts to manage the golf course and several Central Park concessions. The Democratic mayor said the city had the legal right to terminate a contract with a company whose leaders engaged in criminal activity such as inciting a riot. Manhattan State District Court Judge Debra James ruled that the city’s claim that the Trump Organization had breached the contracts had no legal basis. The Aramco Team Series, played for the first time in 2020 as the Saudi Ladies Team International, is sponsored by the Saudi Public Investment Fund. The Saudi fund also supports the LIV Golf Tour, created as a rival to the PGA Tour, which played a tournament in Trump’s Bedminster, NJ, last month. Some family members of 9/11 victims who blame Saudi Arabia for the 2001 terror attacks criticized Trump for organizing the Saudi-backed tour. The Saudi government has denied any involvement in the attacks. Messages seeking comment about Aramco’s Oct. 13-15 tournament in New York were sent to the Trump Organization and the Aramco Team Series. Nick Paolucci, a spokesman for the city’s legal department, said: “As the decision in the previous administration’s court case showed, contractually, the city is bound by the terms of the Trump Ferry license agreement and cannot unreasonably withhold approval of this tournament. “
