Pro golf greats discuss South Africa with Trump, country’s president in tense meeting between leaders

Golfer Retief Goosen talks to President Donald Trump about the dangers of farming in South Africa during a visit to the White House.

A pair of high-profile South African golfers were thrown into a tense exchange at the White House Wednesday. 

Ernie Els and Retief Goosen joined Cyril Ramaphosa, the president of South Africa, for a meeting in the Oval Office with President Donald Trump.

While the meeting between the two leaders got off to a cordial start, the tenor of the meeting took a noticeable turn when Trump confronted Ramaphosa with a video that allegedly showed grave treatment of white farmers. Trump also presented Ramaphosa with documents he claimed were accounts of killings of "thousands" of Afrikaners.

Ramaphosa offered multiple denials to the claims and made it clear the statements made in the videos were not representative of his government's policies. Els and Goosen were then brought into the discussion.

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President Donald Trump meets South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in the Oval Office of the White House Wednesday, May 21, in Washington. (AP/Evan Vucci)

Trump welcomed the golfers as he introduced the South African president.

"I really appreciate that you guys came along. It really helps us in our thought process," Trump said. "You two guys are fantastic," Trump added. "What a group of golfers South Africa has had."

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Els previously held the world's No. 1 golf ranking. He presented his passport and said he was a "proud South African" before referencing "the apartheid era" and calling for unity.

"I know there was a lot of anger through the transition. There was a lot of stuff