Sir John Key says he was the bait for Barack Obama.

The former US President will be playing a couple of rounds of golf with our former Prime Minister on his whirlwind trip to New Zealand this week.

Sir Key told Mike Hosking says he'd been trying to get Obama to visit for the eight years they were the leaders of their respective countries.

"He was desperately keen to come, the problem was any US president has so much pressure on their schedule and bluntly we are a well-behaved citizen. US presidents get dragged off to difficult or big places and we were kind of neither."

John Key says Barack Obama wanted to come for longer and to bring wife Michelle and their children - but there wasn't enough time on this trip.

LISTEN TO THE FULL INTERVIEW WITH MIKE HOSKING ABOVE