**EXHIBIT 31.1** **CERTIFICATION    PURSUANT TO SECTION 302 OF THE SARBANES-OXLEY ACT OF    2002**     I, Omar Asali, certify that:     1.  I have reviewed this Annual Report on    Form 10-K    for the period ended December 31, 2007 of Goldman Sachs    Hedge Fund Partners, LLC;     2.  Based on my knowledge, this report does not    contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state    a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light    of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not    misleading with respect to the period covered by this report;     3.  Based on my knowledge, the financial statements,    and other financial information included in this report, fairly    present in all material respects the financial condition,    results of operations, and cash flow of the registrant as of,    and for, the periods presented in this report;     4.  The registrant’s other certifying officer(s)    and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining    disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act    Rules 13a-15(e)    and    15d-15(e))    and internal control over financial reporting (as defined in    Exchange Act    Rules 13a-15(f)    and    15d-15(f))    for the registrant and have:     a.  Designed such disclosure controls and procedures,    or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed    under our supervision, to ensure that material information    relating to the registrant, including its consolidated    subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those    entities, particularly during the period in which this report is    being prepared;     b.  Designed such internal control over financial    reporting, or caused such internal control over financial    reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide    reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial    reporting and the preparation of financial statements for    external purposes in accordance with generally accepted    accounting principles;     c.  Evaluated the effectiveness of the    registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and    presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness    of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the    period covered by this report based on such evaluation; and     d.  Disclosed in this report any change in the    registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that    occurred during the registrant’s most recent fiscal quarter    (the registrant’s fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an    annual report) that has materially affected, or is reasonably    likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal    control over financial reporting; and     5.  The registrant’s other certifying officer(s)    and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation of    internal control over financial reporting, to the    registrant’s auditors and the board of directors of Goldman    Sachs Hedge Fund Strategies LLC:     a.  All significant deficiencies and material    weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over    financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely    affect the registrant’s ability to record, process,    summarize and report financial information; and     b.  Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves    management or other employees who have a significant role in the    registrant’s internal control over financial reporting. /s/  Omar    Asali