Obama bumps wedding off 16th green
President Barack Obama’s golfing endeavours have hit the headlines again after a couple was forced to move the venue of their wedding so he could play a round with friends.
Natalie Heimel and Edward Mallue are both U.S. army captains stationed in Hawaii and were scheduled to tie the not at Kaneohe Klipper, a military course with ocean views near Obama’s rented vacation home in Kailua.
“There were no hard feelings about the move,” said bridesmaid Christie McConnell. “I’m sure it was a little bit of stress, but they seemed fine.”
The ceremony was relocated to another part of the course and McConnell, the sister of the bride, added that some guests even caught a glimpse of Obama as he golfed.
‘He was really funny and nice’ After the ceremony was complete, the Mallue got a call from the wedding planner, asking permission to give the president his cellphone number.
Obama soon called and McConnell added: “We all hovered around, all excited, listening. He was really funny and nice on the phone.”
The president chatted about golf, apologised for disrupting their plans, and asked the couple how long they had been “going out”.
Obama’s golf hit the headlines on numerous occasions last year, with retired basketball player Michael Jordan referring to him as a “hack” golfer.
He was also criticised after playing at Martha’s Vineyard just after a speech about Islamic State’s beheading of U.S. Journalist James Foley.
For the newlyweds, there were no hard feelings about the change in plans, which was first reported by the U.S. network Bloomberg, and bridesmaid McConnell said it helped to make the day more memorable.
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