What Next for Golfer-in-Chief?

With Barak Obama just two days away from leaving the White House, speculation is mounting on how he will fill in his days away from the presidential limelight.

First of all there will be family commitments. “I've promised Michelle a nice vacation. My girls are getting old enough now where I'm clinging to those very last moments before they are out of the house."

After this relaxation time with his wife and daughters in an unnamed location, the family will return to Washington, where they have rented a mansion in the Kalorama neighbourhood.

Then the 55-year-old – a relatively young former US president – plans to write a book, champion favourite causes, no doubt accept some lucrative speaking gigs, and develop his presidential library and centre in Chicago.

Then there is golf. According to a report in the Daily Telegraph, Obama played a total of 306 rounds of golf during his eight years in the Oval Office, a considerable number compared with other presidents although still well short of Dwight Eisenhower’s estimated 800 and Woodrow Wilson’s more than 1,000.

Obama took up the game in in 1997 at the suggestion of his wife Michelle, who was concerned about the injuries he kept picking up playing basketball. He started on a public course in Chicago with second-hand clubs.

He reportedly had a 17-handicap (considered to be generous) when first elected to office, and he revealed in 2016 that his handicap had fallen to “an honest 13”. Marvin Nicholson, a member of Obama's campaign staff and a regular playing partner, told Golf Digest in 2009 that the president "usually shoots in the mid-90s".

More recently, the Daily Telegraph reported that playing partners over the years had described him as “someone who practised hard and approached the game methodically, refusing to let himself get frustrated, and never swearing after a bad shot. He always played the ‘percentage shot’ and appeared to be a lucky player. He was also extremely competitive and liked playing for money, but only small amounts. Even when he became president he never bent the rules.”

Mr Nicholson told Golf Digest, "When he'd shoot an 11 on a hole I'd say, 'Boss, What did you shoot?' And he'd say, 'I had an 11.' And that's what he'd write on his scorecard. I always respected that." He added that the president had once told him that after he left office he wanted to become a single figure handicapper.