Obama spends day in gym, on links and at beach

President Barack Obama enjoyed a Monday morning round of golf followed by a visit to Pyramid Rock Beach at Marine Corps Base Hawaii.

He played 18 holes at the Mid-Pacific Country Club after a 45-minute workout at the military base’s gym.

Reporters covering the president were not allowed to photograph him at the beach where he joined his family during the afternoon, but a photo op of the president golfing came as he played the 18th hole and reporters and others could see him through a fence from the sidewalk.

The president waved to spectators and even singled out a protester dressed as a polar bear.

The Center for Biological Diversity has dubbed its mascot Frostpaw the Polar Bear, and dispatched him as a protester to follow Obama around in hopes of raising awareness about the fate of polar bears because of climate change and the Keystone XL pipeline.

The proposed 1,179-mile, $5.4 billion Keystone XL pipeline would transport crude oil from the Alberta oil sands in Canada to U.S. refiners in the Midwest and Gulf Coast markets.

Frostpaw was on Martha’s Vineyard over the summer, in California this fall and at the White House for Thanksgiving, the center said in a news release announcing the mascot would be in Hawaii for the duration of the president’s stay. He made his first appearance at the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic Sunday, where the Obama family took in an Oregon State University basketball game coached by the first lady’s brother, Craig Robinson.

Frostpaw may not have gotten notice at the game, but he did manage to get attention from the 18th hole Monday as Obama acknowledged a crowd that had gathered to get a glimpse of him on the course.

"Hey, polar bear," Obama said, laughing.

The president golfed with aide and frequent golfing partner Marvin Nicholson, childhood friend Bobby Titcomb and physician and close friend Eric Whitaker.