THEY have been two of the great passions of Barack Obama’s six years in office. But when forced to choose between his love of golf and his commitment to the environment on a trip to droughtstricken California last weekend, there could really only be one winner – golf.

The President played a Father’s Day four-ball on Sunday in the luxury desert oasis of Rancho Mirage, one of California’s most water-starved areas, despite criticism from environmental groups that he was sending all the wrong signals.

This year Jerry Brown, the governor of California, has already called for a 25 per cent reduction in water usage from 2013 levels across the state after several years of record-low rainfall left reservoirs dwindling and aquifer-levels sinking fast. Still, Mr Obama, who has played more than 220 rounds of golf as president, was not to be deflected from his course despite his spokesman being forced to defend his decision to play golf.

“This administration’s commitment to helping those affected by the drought is second to none,” the aide said as four sets of clubs were unloaded from Air Force One. He added: “I know that many courses have taken water mitigation steps aimed at water conservation.” It is true California’s golf industry has responded to pressure to cut water usage, with the Sunnylands course where Mr Obama played on Sunday claiming that a new irrigation system had reduced watering by 50 per cent on 44 of its 200 acres.

But independent reports have shown that the 122 courses in the Coachella Valley where Rancho Mirage is located still consume 17 per cent of the area’s water, and have caused aquifers to drop between 90ft to 100ft since the 1960s. The Rancho Mirage playground has long been a favourite for US presidents and has hosted several summits of world leaders, including a crucial “reset” meeting between Mr Obama and Xi Jinping, the Chinese president, in 2013.

The area’s signature desert-front properties, with their lush lawns and burbling fountains, are hugely water-hungry, causing Mr Brown to set a 36 per cent reduc- tion requirement for the Coachella Valley – 11 per cent above the state-wide target – in recognition of its excess.

Despite his golfing addiction, Mr Obama remains arguably America’s greenest president, signing a landmark carbon deal with China and using his executive powers to defy Republicans and introduce tough new environmental regulations for both water and coal-fired power stations.