NEW YORK -- In his first international trip since becoming the presumptive Republican nominee, Donald Trump plans to check on a pair of his championship golf resorts.

But some Republicans worry that the billionaire's attention is divided between his businesses and his campaign

"I'm not sure what the purpose of the trip is," said Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., who added that he hopes Trump "would get back here quickly."

Trump's son, Eric, who oversaw the two-year, more than $300 million renovation at the Trump Turnberry golf course, dismissed those concerns, saying "the eyes of the world" will be on his father during a two-day stay in Scotland that begins today.

"The Turnberry course is one of the crown jewels of the golf world and is now one of the crown jewels of our family's properties," Eric Trump said this week in an interview. "He's over there to inspect the course and to support his son who put a tremendous amount of time and energy into the project."

Trump's first stop this morning will be in Turnberry, which is along Scotland's western rocky coast and has been in use for more than a century. The site, which Trump bought in 2014, has hosted four British Open championships, was used as an airplane landing strip during both world wars and features a lighthouse that stands on the ruins of a 13th century castle.

He will visit another course he owns, in Aberdeen, on Saturday before returning to the U.S.

"It's a brief but important visit, and then he will be back on the campaign trail," Eric Trump said.

The trip comes at a precarious time for the United Kingdom. Trump is expected to arrive a day after Britons vote on whether to remain in the European Union. But it comes during what should be rare quiet days in the presidential campaign, with his likely rival, Hillary Clinton having no planned events.

Trump does not have any meetings scheduled with Scottish political leaders, his campaign said. That stands in contrast to previous presidential nominees' foreign trips. In 2012, for instance, Mitt Romney met with British Prime Minister David Cameron. In 2008, then-U.S. Sen. Barack Obama met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

"A presidential candidate has every right to take a few days off and be with his family," said Ed Cox, the chair of the New York State Republican Party. "Besides, the general election doesn't really start until the convention next month. He has plenty of time."

Trump, whose mother was born in Scotland, has long emphasized his ties to the country, but he has waged several battles with those in his ancestral homeland. Earlier this year, he was stripped of an honorary degree from Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen.

Trump was initially welcomed by Scottish leaders. But relationships soured as arguments ensued over a nearby wind farm and the levels of investment promised. Trump feared the wind farm would block the view from his course. He said he had received assurances that it would not be built. Trump denounced a leading Scottish politician, Alex Salmond, as "an embarrassment to Scotland."

In December, Trump lost his court case to block the wind farm development.

After promising to create thousands of jobs, Trump employs 150 people north of Aberdeen and has invested $150 million in the resort. It hasn't made a profit since it opened.

Many Scottish leaders now want nothing to do with him.

"We welcome all Americans -- minus Trump," Salmond, a member of parliament for the Scottish National Party, said in an interview this week. "He's not a popular person in Scotland, but the way Trump talks you'd think he owned the country."

Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon stripped Trump from his role as business ambassador for Scotland. While British Prime Minister David Cameron said at the time Trump shouldn't be blocked, he called his comments "stupid and wrong."

Sturgeon won't be meeting Trump on his visit. "I wish Turnberry golf course very well," she told Bloomberg Television. When it comes to the U.S. presidential race, "I'd much prefer Hillary Clinton than Donald Trump."

Trump's trip also comes just days after he dismissed his campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, and reported having just $1.3 million in cash on hand at the start of June, compared to the $42 million Clinton reported.

An analysis of Federal Election Commission filings found that the Trump campaign spent about $6 million on various Trump products and services, as well as reimbursing family members for travel.

Federal rules require companies -- even ones owned by the candidate -- to charge fair-market value so as not to run afoul of a ban on corporate campaign contributions.

Responding to complaints that his campaign has paid for event space at venues controlled by his own companies, Trump stressed those federal rules in an interview with conservative talk show host Hugh Hewitt.

"By law, I have to reimburse the aircraft and the plane and all the stuff, okay?" Trump said. "And I'm very meticulous about it."

He added: "I would love to just use my places and not charge. It's fine. It's better for me. I would like it much better."

Later in the interview he said it would be "stupid" to use someone else's plane or event venues.

Information for this article was contributed by Jonathan Lemire, Mary Clare Jalonick, Julie Bykowicz and Chad Day of The Associated Press and by Stephanie Baker and Francine Lacqua of Bloomberg News

A Section on 06/24/2016