President Donald Trump reportedly told congressional leaders a story he heard from golfer Bernhard Langer to back his unsubstantiated claims that 3 million to 5 million "illegals" voted in the 2016 election.

Trump repeated his claim about widespread voter fraud, which is backed by no evidence, in a Monday meeting with lawmakers. When Democrats called foul, Trump relayed a story that he said Langer told him, The New York Times reported, citing three staff members who were in the room.

Trump said that Langer, a two-time Masters champion, waited in line to vote in Florida on Election Day before an official said he was not allowed to, witnesses told the Times. Trump went on to say that Langer stood next to people who did not look like they should be allowed to vote but who were able to cast provisional ballots, the newspaper reported.

Trump then floated the Latin American countries those voters could have hailed from, according to the Times. The report said the story "was greeted with silence" and White House chief of staff Reince Priebus urged Trump to change the subject.