December 11, 2009–President Barack Obama is just another in a long line of United States presidents who have played golf in Las Vegas. According to the newest Golf Digest, Obama snuck in some holes at Las Vegas golf course Bali Hai Golf Club during his campaign for president. But until he plays in Las Vegas as the sitting president, we can't officially add him to the list of Clinton, Bush, and Ford, among others (to our knowledge, he hasn't). But here is an open invitation to him to return.
From Golf Digest: "There were only two hours of light left. Obama and three aides raced over to the Bali Hai Golf Club, just off the strip and not far from Mandalay Bay, for a quick nine holes. Obama and Marvin Nicholson, a 10-handicapper, teamed up against Robert Gibbs, a single-digit handicapper who was the campaign's communications director, and Reggie Love, the candidate's close personal aide and a former Duke University basketball and football player who was a wild boomer with his big-headed driver. On the first tee, Love announced the stakes: $10 per hole." Click now to read the entire article about Obama and his love of golf.
Bali Hai Golf Club is a resort Las Vegas golf course that is located conveniently in the heart of Las Vegas on the Las Vegas Strip, and is laid out in the shadows of the Mandalay Bay Resort. This Las Vegas golf course is a tropical paradise in the desert, and brings to mind playing golf in the South Pacific. Palm trees, lagoon-like water features, and a beautiful clubhouse are just a few of the highlights of Bali Hai, one of three Las Vegas golf courses operated by Walters Golf. Click now to the official website of Bali Hai Golf Club to reserve your special Las Vegas golf tee times and find out about a special Las Vegas golf rate where you can play Bali Hai Golf Club for just $95 during this holiday season (this is a twilight rate).
As most know, Obama is an avid basketball player, but according to the article, Obama's wife, Michelle, urged him to do something else for excercise because playing hoops was taking a physical toll. "Why don't you take up something less dangerous?" Michelle told her husband in early 1997. "Like golf?" Obama did take up the game, and according to his golfing buddies, playing it straight, counting every stroke and working to improve. And just like that day on the campaign trail, sneaking in holes whenever possible.
Presidents and golf in Las Vegas have a long history. Bali Hai Golf Club has also been the place where former President Bill Clinton has teed it up several times. Clinton was even seen once walking down the Las Vegas Strip in full golf regalia with his golfing buddies while black secret service SUVs inched along next to him. And, to this day, George Herbert Walker Bush is the only person who his own fishing pole in the locker room of the legendary Shadow Creek Golf Club. So hopefully Obama will return and play golf in Las Vegas, thus continuing a long tradition.