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Photos: Couple's wedding disrupted by Obama's round of golf

December 31, 2014

A couple getting married near President Barack Obama’s holiday spot in Hawaii learned the hard way that the big day rarely goes exactly as planned.

Couple's wedding disrupted by Obama's round of golf
Bride and groom Natalie Heimel and Edward Mallue Jr – both US Army captains – were due to tie the knot at Kaneohe Klipper Golf Course, a military course with ocean views near Mr Obama’s rented vacation home in Kailua.

But the day before the ceremony they were told they would have to change their venue away from the 16th hole because the US leader and his friends were planning to play a round.


U.S. Army captains Natalie Heimel and Edward Mallue Jr., hold their wedding ceremony at a residential area above the Kaneohe Klipper Golf Course on Marine Corps Base Hawaii, Hawaii in this photo courtesy of Paige Walker taken on December 28, 2014. The couple had planned to get married on Sunday on the 16th hole of the Kaneohe Klipper Golf Course on Marine Corps Base Hawaii, but on Saturday, the couple was told they would have to find a different location because the president had plans to play golf there at the time of their ceremony. U.S. President Barack Obama personally apologized to the bride last weekend after discovering his golf plans had forced the Army couple to move the location of their wedding. Picture taken on December 28, 2014. REUTERS/Paige Walker/Handout (UNITED STATES - Tags: MILITARY SOCIETY POLITICS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS PICTURE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. THIS PICTURE WAS PROCESSED BY REUTERS TO ENHANCE QUALITY. AN UNPROCESSED VERSION HAS BEEN PROVIDED SEPARATELY NO SALES. NO ARCHIVES. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS
A source said the White House did not learn about the clash until after the fact. They said Mr Obama called the bride to apologise and to offer his congratulations.

Heimel’s sister, Christie McConnell said: ‘They’re both pretty even-tempered and planners. I’m sure it was a little bit of stress, but they seemed fine.’

The ceremony relocated to another part of the course that offered better views than the 16th hole, she said, adding that some guests even caught a glimpse of Obama as he golfed.

After the ceremony was done and members of the bridal party were taking photos, Mallue got a call from the wedding planner asking permission to give the president his cellphone number, said McConnell, a bridesmaid. Then, Obama called and Mallue put the call on speakerphone.

‘We all hovered around, all excited, listening,’ McConnell said. Obama asked how long they had been ‘going out,’ (since they met in Germany in 2011) chatted about golf and apologised for disrupting their plans. ‘He was really funny and nice on the phone.’
(FILES) In this December 24, 2014 file photo, US President Barack Obama talks to reporters as he plays golf with Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razzak at Marine Corps Base Hawaii. President Barack Obama's passion for golf forced two US army officers to relocate their sun-kissed Hawaiian wedding at the last minute. Captains Natalie Heimel and Edward Mallue were all set to tie the knot December 28, 2014 at the Kaneohe Klipper golf course, located on a US Marine Corps base. But then they learned that Obama was scheduled to hit the links at the same time they'd be exchanging vows. Within 24 hours, they relocated the ceremony to the bucolic lawn of the base commander's residence, overlooking the Pacific. There the newlyweds took a cellphone call from the Commander in Chief, who expressed congratulations and apologized for any inconvenience caused. AFP PHOTO/ NICHOLAS KAMM / FILESNICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images
Obama’s people said the White House was unaware that a wedding was taking place when they booked the golf course
The newlyweds said they weren’t angry with Obama.

‘We knew there were two things that could mess up the wedding. One was the weather and the other was the president,’ the bride told NBC News in an interview. ‘I’m sure that his staffers didn’t let him know there was a wedding.’

Asked if he could have beaten the president on the course, Mallue paused briefly and then said, laughingly, ‘Probably.’

McConnell said the phone call from the president made the wedding all the more memorable.
‘There were no hard feelings about the move,’ she said. ‘It was all a good thing.’

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