ARIZONA CARDINALS

Larry Fitzgerald recalls hole-in-one while playing golf with President Obama

Jan 29, 2023, 7:19 AM
NFL athlete Larry Fitzgerald tees off on the first hole during round one of the American Century Ch...
NFL athlete Larry Fitzgerald tees off on the first hole during round one of the American Century Championship at Edgewood Tahoe South golf course on July 9, 2020 in South Lake Tahoe, Nevada. (Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)
(Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)

Hitting a hole-in-one is a momentous occasion any time. But accomplishing the feat while playing with a president, now that’s on another level.

Arizona Cardinals icon Larry Fitzgerald did just that while playing with President Barack Obama four years ago and recalled the moment with Barstool Sports’ Fore Play podcast this week.

“We got to the 13th hole and he hit a really tight shot in there, President Obama hit it to probably like 6 feet,” Fitzgerald said. “He was chirping.”

So Fitzgerald got up to the tee and upstaged Obama, whom he sometimes refers to as “44” being the 44th president of the United States.

“I was like ‘that was a great shot,'” he said. “I stepped up with an eight-iron, it was blowing into it, probably 15, hit a nice little tight cut, feel like the wind stood it up and it dropped and just rolled in.”

Fitzgerald remembered Obama was excited for him but the future Hall of Famer wasn’t sure how to react because, you know, the president happens to be surrounded by Secret Service.

“I didn’t know how to respond because I saw the Secret Service in front of us, in the back of us, I saw the guns,” he joked. “I put my hands up and was like thank you, thank you, don’t make any quick movements.

“It was awesome and it was a moment I’ll never forget.”

Word quickly got around about Fitzgerald’s accomplishment on a different green.

“Next thing I know I was on Golf Channel by the end of the day,” he said.

Fitzgerald said the golf game with Obama was the first time he met the president and described him as a conversational, easy going and down-to-earth guy.

“If you guys ever spend time with a president, you realize these are some special, special people,” he said. “He could talk finance, he can talk agriculture, he can talk sports … whatever the subject you want to talk about he’s got that in the tool bag.

“It’s spectacular and interesting to be able to spend four hours with somebody who is that well-versed with everything in life.”

The hole-in-one with Obama was Fitzgerald’s second of four so far in his time playing the sport, which he said began in 2013 with an invitation to play from former teammate Andre Roberts.

Fitzgerald in the podcast also touched on how he plays the sport and where he fit it in during his time with the Cardinals, Tiger Woods and his love for pickleball.

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