Obama, Boehner come together at White House to celebrate golf

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama and Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives John Boehner made a rare joint appearance on Tuesday at the White House to celebrate a common love: golf. Boehner, who has opposed a lot of the Democratic president's legislative initiatives, joined him and Vice President Joe Biden on stage for a reception to honor the 2013 Presidents Cup at the White House. Golf great Tiger Woods stood near them. "I am joined by two of my favorite golf partners, the Vice President, Joe Biden, and the Speaker of the House, John Boehner," Obama said in brief remarks. "In each instance, they have to give me strokes." Both Obama and Boehner are avid golfers, though they rarely play together. Obama made a point to thank another golf great for giving him pointers on how to deal with sand. "I want to thank Phil Mickelson for giving me an excellent tip on my sand game, because I’m pretty sure I can shave at least two or three strokes if I can just get out of the darn sand," the president said to laughter from the crowd. (Reporting by Jeff Mason; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)