Island Paradise
SCOREGolf - Travel -
Island Paradise
Brent Long
Kauai rose above sea level some five million years ago. The remnants of her volcanoes are majestic mountains sometimes shrouded in clouds, sometimes pouring forth white ribbons of waterfalls. The most northerly, first populated and geologically oldest, Hawaii's Island of Discovery is a recreational paradise, a land of legends or a seductive romantic retreat — whatever you'd like it to be. It's also home to several wonderful tropical resorts and nine golf courses, including two outstanding designs by Jack Nicklaus and four Robert Trent Jones Jr. creations.
Set high upon a bluff overlooking Hanalei Bay and the lush valley below, elegant Princeville Resort is fit for royalty and anyone looking for a luxurious oceanside getaway in one of the most beautiful spots in the world.
Robert Trent Jones Jr., the designer of the 18-hole Prince Golf Course and the 27-hole, three-nine, Makai Golf Course, has said, "In all the world, I never expected to find a more spectacularly beautiful place to build a golf course than Princeville." And he's not exaggerating. Princeville Resort is a golfer's paradise. Since opening in 1990, the Prince Course has been consistently chosen among the top golf courses in the United States and is Hawaii's top-rated layout. After a tough first hole, the front side of this course proves to be very playable as it winds through tropical jungles, waterfalls, streams and ravines. Perched 100 feet above the fairway on the 12th tee, the Prince starts to reveal why it's considered the most challenging course in Hawaii. Golfers are asked to launch a ball into a jungle-lined fairway while also dealing with the ever-present tradewinds. The second shot on this 385-yard, par 4, requires accuracy to a green that is set in an amphitheatre of natural ferns and tropical foliage with a stream guarding both sides and the back of the green. The good news? There are no bunkers. From there, the Prince, with a course rating of 75.3 and a slope of 145 from the back tees, offers a series of golf holes that are truly unforgettable.
Just a short distance away is the friendlier 27-hole Makai course. Play has been known to back up on No. 7 Ocean, a 157-yard, par 3 over an ocean gorge, as visitors watch pods of humpback whales jump and breach in the blue Pacific Ocean from December to February. Even if you're not playing the championship tees, walk back to observe and enjoy a 180-degree view Kauai's north shore. Taking its name from the series of lakes integrated throughout the holes, The Lakes nine heads out in the opposite direction and works its way back to the ocean cliffs. The Woods, the inland nine, features rock-garden-style bunkers and views of the mountains with towering waterfalls.
Kauai Lagoons Golf Club is home to two of four Jack Nicklaus-designed golf courses in Hawaii, and within 10 years of opening the Kiele course in 1988, 30 new golf courses were built on the islands. The dramatic Kiele Course, easily Nicklaus' best in Hawaii, weaves along imposing ocean cliffs, lush valleys, and 40 acres of freshwater lagoons. He begins with a short, wide-open par 4 and gradually tightens the noose, finishing with three semi-island greens. Each hole is named for an animal, depicted in a marble statue at the tee. Nicklaus saves the 'Golden Bear' until the 13th hole, a 207-yard par 3 over the crashing surf below to a diagonal green. The course's signature hole is No. 16, a 330-yard, par 4 that requires a leap of faith down to a hidden oceanside green that can be easily reached with a solid drive and a lucky bounce. Be warned — it's easier to land in the Pacific.
The Kiele course's companion, the Mokihana course, opened a year later. This Scottish style links course features more open fairways and fewer forced carries. Set in the heart of Kauai Lagoons is the resort's hotel, the Kauai Marriott. Basking along the white sand beach of Kalapaki Bay, this stellar family oriented resort and beach club offers guests a world of endless activities, including the largest pool in Hawaii and affordable restaurants. It's a five-minute drive from Lihue Airport, which connects tourists to all other island flights as well as Hawaii's main hub in Honolulu.
Nearby, Puakea Golf Course has been considered one of the best nine-hole golf courses in the U.S., but that changed this summer. A recent injection of cash from billionaire and America Online founder Steve Case, who purchased Puakea and the 22,000 Grove Farm Properties in 2000, has allowed architect Robin Nelson to complete his design that first opened in 1997. Set in the lush landscape adjacent to where the movie Jurassic Park was filmed, the new 18-hole, 7,200-yard championship course will be a daily fee facility.
Backed by lush emerald mountains and sculpted from rolling plateaus eight stories above the Ocean waters, golfers will find Poipu Bay Golf Course nestled along Kauai's south shore. At Poipu Bay, nature and renowned architect Robert Trent Jones Jr. have conspired to create a stunning venue, with breathtaking views that make it difficult for any golfer to stay focused on his or her game. Consistently rated as one of the top-10 courses in Hawaii, this 7,043-yard, par-72 ocean-links course, covers 210 seaside acres and when the wind blows, it really heats up. Poipu Bay's par-4, 510-yard 16th hole was dubbed "the Pebble Beach of the Pacific" by Trent Jones Jr. for its sprawling run along the rugged coastline. Play is downhill and downwind from an elevated tee with both the dogleg-left fairway and green sloping towards the ocean. The green is Poipu Bay's largest and its most undulating, and is guarded by three bunkers stretching from the right to the back of the green. It's certainly one of the top three golf holes on the island.
Within an easy walk of the course, visitors will find the sensational Hyatt Regency Kauai Resort and Spa, which offers convenient stay-and-play packages. Situated on 50 acres of manicured grounds and surrounded by glorious white sand beaches, the resort features a labyrinth of 607 rooms in wings that are no higher than the tallest palm tree. The serenity of one of the world's top tropical resorts connects seamlessly with convenient business facilities, an award-winning spa and fitness centre, to its six restaurants and six lounges, a river pool, waterfalls, 15-foot water-slide, freshwater pool and a salt-water lagoon. Do drop by Dondero's restaurant for an exceptional evening meal featuring regional Italian cuisine followed by a visit to Stevenson's Library, a hopping library bar with nightly jazz entertainment.
The Hyatt plays host to The PGA Grand Slam of Golf that will be played for the 10th time at Poipu Bay from Dec. 15-17 and this year will see Mike Weir join the field. The winners of each year's four major championships — The Masters, U.S. Open, British Open and PGA Championship — are the only players invited to play for the $1 million purse.
For tourists who enjoy a variety of courses, there's the Kauai Golf Challenge that allows golfers to play a round of golf at the island's top three courses: The Prince Course at Princeville Resort, Poipu Bay Golf Course and the Kiele Course at Kauai Lagoons.
On the island, three courses are popular with the locals. Jones' fourth design at Kiahuna Plantation, a 6,366-yard layout is tougher than one might expect given its shorter distance, Wailua Golf Club, at 6,981-yards is the top-rated public course on the island and Kukuiolono Golf Course is a 2,981-yard nine-holer.
Island Paradise
Brent Long
Kauai rose above sea level some five million years ago. The remnants of her volcanoes are majestic mountains sometimes shrouded in clouds, sometimes pouring forth white ribbons of waterfalls. The most northerly, first populated and geologically oldest, Hawaii's Island of Discovery is a recreational paradise, a land of legends or a seductive romantic retreat — whatever you'd like it to be. It's also home to several wonderful tropical resorts and nine golf courses, including two outstanding designs by Jack Nicklaus and four Robert Trent Jones Jr. creations.
Set high upon a bluff overlooking Hanalei Bay and the lush valley below, elegant Princeville Resort is fit for royalty and anyone looking for a luxurious oceanside getaway in one of the most beautiful spots in the world.
Robert Trent Jones Jr., the designer of the 18-hole Prince Golf Course and the 27-hole, three-nine, Makai Golf Course, has said, "In all the world, I never expected to find a more spectacularly beautiful place to build a golf course than Princeville." And he's not exaggerating. Princeville Resort is a golfer's paradise. Since opening in 1990, the Prince Course has been consistently chosen among the top golf courses in the United States and is Hawaii's top-rated layout. After a tough first hole, the front side of this course proves to be very playable as it winds through tropical jungles, waterfalls, streams and ravines. Perched 100 feet above the fairway on the 12th tee, the Prince starts to reveal why it's considered the most challenging course in Hawaii. Golfers are asked to launch a ball into a jungle-lined fairway while also dealing with the ever-present tradewinds. The second shot on this 385-yard, par 4, requires accuracy to a green that is set in an amphitheatre of natural ferns and tropical foliage with a stream guarding both sides and the back of the green. The good news? There are no bunkers. From there, the Prince, with a course rating of 75.3 and a slope of 145 from the back tees, offers a series of golf holes that are truly unforgettable.
Just a short distance away is the friendlier 27-hole Makai course. Play has been known to back up on No. 7 Ocean, a 157-yard, par 3 over an ocean gorge, as visitors watch pods of humpback whales jump and breach in the blue Pacific Ocean from December to February. Even if you're not playing the championship tees, walk back to observe and enjoy a 180-degree view Kauai's north shore. Taking its name from the series of lakes integrated throughout the holes, The Lakes nine heads out in the opposite direction and works its way back to the ocean cliffs. The Woods, the inland nine, features rock-garden-style bunkers and views of the mountains with towering waterfalls.
Kauai Lagoons Golf Club is home to two of four Jack Nicklaus-designed golf courses in Hawaii, and within 10 years of opening the Kiele course in 1988, 30 new golf courses were built on the islands. The dramatic Kiele Course, easily Nicklaus' best in Hawaii, weaves along imposing ocean cliffs, lush valleys, and 40 acres of freshwater lagoons. He begins with a short, wide-open par 4 and gradually tightens the noose, finishing with three semi-island greens. Each hole is named for an animal, depicted in a marble statue at the tee. Nicklaus saves the 'Golden Bear' until the 13th hole, a 207-yard par 3 over the crashing surf below to a diagonal green. The course's signature hole is No. 16, a 330-yard, par 4 that requires a leap of faith down to a hidden oceanside green that can be easily reached with a solid drive and a lucky bounce. Be warned — it's easier to land in the Pacific.
The Kiele course's companion, the Mokihana course, opened a year later. This Scottish style links course features more open fairways and fewer forced carries. Set in the heart of Kauai Lagoons is the resort's hotel, the Kauai Marriott. Basking along the white sand beach of Kalapaki Bay, this stellar family oriented resort and beach club offers guests a world of endless activities, including the largest pool in Hawaii and affordable restaurants. It's a five-minute drive from Lihue Airport, which connects tourists to all other island flights as well as Hawaii's main hub in Honolulu.
Nearby, Puakea Golf Course has been considered one of the best nine-hole golf courses in the U.S., but that changed this summer. A recent injection of cash from billionaire and America Online founder Steve Case, who purchased Puakea and the 22,000 Grove Farm Properties in 2000, has allowed architect Robin Nelson to complete his design that first opened in 1997. Set in the lush landscape adjacent to where the movie Jurassic Park was filmed, the new 18-hole, 7,200-yard championship course will be a daily fee facility.
Backed by lush emerald mountains and sculpted from rolling plateaus eight stories above the Ocean waters, golfers will find Poipu Bay Golf Course nestled along Kauai's south shore. At Poipu Bay, nature and renowned architect Robert Trent Jones Jr. have conspired to create a stunning venue, with breathtaking views that make it difficult for any golfer to stay focused on his or her game. Consistently rated as one of the top-10 courses in Hawaii, this 7,043-yard, par-72 ocean-links course, covers 210 seaside acres and when the wind blows, it really heats up. Poipu Bay's par-4, 510-yard 16th hole was dubbed "the Pebble Beach of the Pacific" by Trent Jones Jr. for its sprawling run along the rugged coastline. Play is downhill and downwind from an elevated tee with both the dogleg-left fairway and green sloping towards the ocean. The green is Poipu Bay's largest and its most undulating, and is guarded by three bunkers stretching from the right to the back of the green. It's certainly one of the top three golf holes on the island.
Within an easy walk of the course, visitors will find the sensational Hyatt Regency Kauai Resort and Spa, which offers convenient stay-and-play packages. Situated on 50 acres of manicured grounds and surrounded by glorious white sand beaches, the resort features a labyrinth of 607 rooms in wings that are no higher than the tallest palm tree. The serenity of one of the world's top tropical resorts connects seamlessly with convenient business facilities, an award-winning spa and fitness centre, to its six restaurants and six lounges, a river pool, waterfalls, 15-foot water-slide, freshwater pool and a salt-water lagoon. Do drop by Dondero's restaurant for an exceptional evening meal featuring regional Italian cuisine followed by a visit to Stevenson's Library, a hopping library bar with nightly jazz entertainment.
The Hyatt plays host to The PGA Grand Slam of Golf that will be played for the 10th time at Poipu Bay from Dec. 15-17 and this year will see Mike Weir join the field. The winners of each year's four major championships — The Masters, U.S. Open, British Open and PGA Championship — are the only players invited to play for the $1 million purse.
For tourists who enjoy a variety of courses, there's the Kauai Golf Challenge that allows golfers to play a round of golf at the island's top three courses: The Prince Course at Princeville Resort, Poipu Bay Golf Course and the Kiele Course at Kauai Lagoons.
On the island, three courses are popular with the locals. Jones' fourth design at Kiahuna Plantation, a 6,366-yard layout is tougher than one might expect given its shorter distance, Wailua Golf Club, at 6,981-yards is the top-rated public course on the island and Kukuiolono Golf Course is a 2,981-yard nine-holer.
posted by DP at 9:25 PM
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