One Round of Golf, One Presidential Pardon: How Trump Freed a Billion-Dollar Power Broker

President Donald Trump granted a full pardon to entertainment executive Tim Leiweke after a well-timed intervention from one of his golfing buddies — a move that overrode the Justice Department’s own prosecution.

According to The Wall Street Journal, former prosecutor and GOP Rep. Trey Gowdy raised concerns about the case while playing a round of golf with Trump at Mar-a-Lago on November 16. Three weeks later, the president issued a pardon for Gowdy’s client, bypassing what DOJ officials described as an “airtight” case.

Leiweke, 68, had been indicted for allegedly rigging the bidding process for a $375 million basketball arena at the University of Texas in 2018.

Prosecutors accused him of offering business to a company co-founded by Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones in exchange for the firm’s agreement not to submit a competing bid. Live Nation CEO Irving Azoff, Leiweke’s business partner, was granted immunity as part of the investigation.

Gowdy reportedly urged Trump to push for a nonprosecution deal similar to the one Azoff received, telling the president that Leiweke had been mistreated. After weeks of deliberation, Trump issued a full pardon — effectively dismantling both the criminal case and a related civil effort by the DOJ to tackle anticompetitive practices in the live events industry.

Gowdy insisted he never explicitly asked for a pardon. “The president…was elected to make that decision,” he said.

The White House defended the move, saying Trump “is the final decider on any pardon or commutation.”

The timing of the pardon undercut the Justice Department’s only major case aimed at combating high ticket prices — an ongoing antitrust lawsuit against Live Nation and Ticketmaster. Prosecutors had hoped to use Leiweke’s indictment to compel his cooperation. With the pardon in hand, Leiweke has indicated he will not assist the DOJ unless a judge fully dismisses the charges.

Live Nation has denied wrongdoing, arguing it does not hold a monopoly and that performers and sports teams set ticket prices.

Gowdy, who has played golf with Trump before, previously praised the president’s skills on Fox News, claiming Trump “hit every fairway” during a summer outing.

Joseph Johnson

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