Former President Barack Obama was spotted looking relaxed as he played golf in his home state of Hawaii in the run up to the holidays.
The 62-year-old looked calm as he made his way around the course near Honolulu, wearing customized golf shoes and glove emblazoned with 44, representing his time as the 44th President of the United States.
Alongside his personalized glove and sneakers, the former president donned a Nike polo, white shorts and a cap for the outing.
Obama was pictured playing alongside others at the Ko Olina Resort on the coast of Oahu.
Since vacating the White House in 2016, the former president has had more time to enjoy the game he loves.
Obama, who was born in Hawaii, has been pictured visiting the state previously with his family during the Christmas period.
The former president kicked off the holiday season as he teed off at the Ko Olina Resort on Oahu
Alongside his personalized glove and sneakers, the former president donned a Nike polo, white shorts and a cap for the outing
Known for his love of the sport, Obama played a total of 333 rounds over his eight years as president, an average of once every 8.8 days.
In comparison, his successor Donald Trump played around 260 rounds of golf in his term.
Former First Lady Michelle Obama previously told Ellen DeGeneres that her husband’s love of the sport was a source of frustration, confessing that the one thing she would get rid of is his golf clubs because it ‘takes too long’ for him to play the game.
She said: ‘They’re annoying! It takes too long! Why is there a sport where there are 18 holes? They just made that up, that’s somebody trying to avoid their wife!’
It comes after reports emerged this week that Obama thinks President Joe Biden, who served as his Vice President, could lose the White House next year.
The 62-year-old appeared relaxed as he made his way around the course with others
Known for his love of the sport, Obama played a total of 333 rounds over his eight years as president, an average of once every 8.8 days
Since vacating the White House in 2016, the former president has had more time to enjoy the game he loves
With Trump edging ahead in polls nationwide and concerns about the current president’s age, a person described by The WSJ as being familiar with Obama’s thinking said he was troubled.
Obama ‘knows this is going to be a close race’, the source said, and ‘feels that Democrats very well could lose’ the 2024 election.
Obama worries that ‘the alternative is pretty dangerous for democracy,’ the person said.
Biden, 81, continues to be plagued by voters’ doubts about the strength of the economy, as well as concerns about the security of the U.S.-Mexico border and worries about crime.
A new Reuters/Ipsos poll this week – like many other polls over the past month – found Donald Trump in the lead.
Barack Obama and Joe Biden are seen in the White House in September 2022. Obama is now said to be concerned that Biden could lose in 2024
Even more worrisome for Democrats, the poll shows independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. takes votes away from Biden and 60 percent of voters say they want another option when it comes to the 2024 presidential race.
But the looming election rematch next year between Biden and Trump would be closely fought with both candidates saddled with profound vulnerabilities that could cost them the White House.
Biden aides dismiss the relevancy of the polls, so far from the election, and cite a frequent Biden refrain: ‘Don’t compare me to the Almighty, compare me to the alternative.’
They believe that voters, choosing between Biden and Trump, will reject Trump for his legal turmoil and continued promotion of election lies.
They also hope that Republicans will remain out of step with the electorate on abortion – most voters do not back the extreme hard line taken by the party – and that strong economic data will finally be felt at home.