Kauai Article
KAUAI—A BEAUTIFUL WILDNESS
By George Fuller
Ask Robert Trent Jones II, who has been designing golf courses in Hawaii for more than 40 years, to define what it is that makes golf in the islands so unique, and he answers without hesitation, “There’s a beautiful wildness to Hawaii. And a wonderful spirit of aloha everywhere you go. Best of all, most of the courses have ocean views. The combination of these things makes playing golf in Hawaii unique in the world, and as good as it gets.” The wild landscape of Hawaii’s 80-plus courses varies from dense jungle to seaside links; from vast fields of black lava to verdant mountain pastures. But the essence of Jones’ “beautiful wildness” is most easily found on Kauai. With its majestic green mountains ribbed with knife-like ridgelines, thick and colorful foliage, and hidden beaches that ring the island, Kauai is everyone’s idea of the idyllic tropical paradise.
A PERFECT LANDSCAPE FOR GOLF
“Kauai is a perfect landscape for golf,” Jones says. “Although everyone immediately recognizes the dramatic beauty of the ocean, Kauai also has spectacular inland views of the rugged mountain ranges.”
He’s right, though perhaps he’s not the most impartial commentator. In addition to owning a home in Hanalei for many years, Jones has stamped his signature on several of the island’s best golf courses, including the Princeville Prince course, which annually ranks as one of the top courses in Hawaii, and its recently renovated sister, the Makai Golf Club at Princeville.
Both of these North Shore designs take full advantage of those panoramic ocean and mountain views Jones describes, with the Makai offering a more forgiving, resort-style round, while the Prince Course is designed to test all comers, as it has since opening in 1991.
“We went all out at the Prince Course,” Jones says. “It is a course that commands respect on every shot. When the beverage cart sells more golf balls than beer you know it’s a demanding course.” Routed through jungle ravines and across an oceanfront bluff, resistance to scoring is found in many forms: forced carries from a number of tees, both grass and sand fairway bunkering, wind, hillside lies, and fast, undulating greens.
The layout’s demand for accuracy is nowhere more apparent than on the signature par-four 12th hole, where you are asked to clout a long and straight tee ball off a cliff with enough accuracy to land in the middle of a narrow, jungle-sided fairway 100 feet below; and then place a wedge shot over a stream and onto a green surrounded by tangled trouble. One half expects genetically reinvigorated dinosaurs (ala Jurassic Park which was filmed nearby) to charge from the jungle to complete the challenge of No. 12.
In addition to new grasses and bunker sand throughout, the renovation of Makai combined what formerly were known as the Ocean and Lakes nines into one 18-hole layout; while the third nonet, Woods, is now promoted as a family-friendly, nine-hole loop.
SWINGING AWAY ON THE SOUTH SHORE
Poipu — on the south shore of Kauai — not only dishes up really good golf, but offers some of the best beaches, shopping and dining on the island. The premiere property in Poipu is the Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort & Spa and its affiliated golf course, Poipu Bay Golf Course.
Set on 210 acres of dramatic headlands above the Pacific, with several holes playing right along the cliff’s edge, Poipu Bay Golf Course is where the PGA Grand Slam of Golf was played from 1994 to 2006. Greg Norman won the inaugural Major-winners-only event in 1994, and his successor as number one player in the world, Tiger Woods, dominated from 1998 through 2002, winning five consecutive times. Phil Mickelson set the course record with a remarkable 13-under-par 59 on the final day of play in 2004.
This Robert Trent Jones II-designed track ranks among Hawaii’s most beautiful, although it can also rank among the Aloha State’s toughest when the wind is blowing off the Pacific. No. 15 is one of the most stunning holes you’ll ever encounter. A 477-yard par-four, the tee box is situated on an elevated bluff with a steep cliff plummeting down to the Pacific Ocean on the left. Your tee shot typically plays downwind to a wide fairway. Favoring the right side (as the ocean is on the left) a decent drive leaves players a mid-iron approach to the green that is backdropped by the Hyatt and a sweeping view of the cliffs and water.
Players also encounter a number of significant historical sites that are protected and maintained by Poipu Bay staff, including several ancient Hawaiian heiau (places of worship) and handmade stone walls that are estimated to date back over 500 years. Less than two miles away in Poipu is Kiahuna Golf Club. Yet another Jones II design, this par 70/6,925-yard tract draws locals as well as resort guests and costs under $100 to play. Players encounter more than birdies, bogeys, and pars on this course, as the routing leads past the archaeological remnants of an old Hawaiian fishing village and some cool spider caves that are home to a rare species (and a free drop). The course also features the wonderful ocean and soaring mountain views for which Kauai is famous.
A GOLFER’S PARADISE
In Lihue, adjacent to the Kauai Marriott Resort & Beach Club, is Kauai Lagoons Golf Club, and a Jack Nicklaus design called Kiele. A redesign under Mr. Nicklaus' watchful eye was completed in 2011, adding three new holes (two to the front side and a new ocean hole on the back) to what was already a very strong finishing stretch. Hole 16 is a stunner, with its green jutting out into Nawiliwili Bay and a small lighthouse on some lava rocks just to the left of the putting surface.
Nearby Puakea Golf Course opened as an 18-hole course in the summer of 2003, after several years as “the best 10-hole course in the world” as Sports Illustrated called it. Designer Robin Nelson created a routing that plays around deep ravines and streams, with dramatic mountain and ocean views so stunning that even the most obsessed of golfers pause to take them in. A fun daily fee course, Puakea is preferred by many local players. Actor Craig T. Nelson, who has a home in Princeville, calls it one of his favorites, and rates here are under $100.
Another favorite of locals is Wailua Golf Course, a municipal layout that fronts the ocean on several holes and has played host to three Amateur Public Links Championships over the years. Though the golf shop and restaurant have recently closed due to lack of funding, the course is still operating and a lot of low-key fun to play. Non-resident rates on this walkable layout range from $48-$60.
There is a phrase in the islands, Hawaii no ka oi...Hawaii is the best. Ask any golfer who has experienced his or her favorite game in the beautiful wildness of Kauai, and they are likely to strongly agree.
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