Maui HI Golf Trip
Golf Magazine, 12/11, 11/09
Golf Digest, 1/09
Maui Adventure
by Jeff Ritter, Golf Magazine, 12/11
Aloha and greetings from Maui. This is the first in a series of installments from Hawaii's second-largest island, and the journey begins in Wailea, a sun-soaked community on Maui's Southwest side.
It's a fitting place to start given that Wailea's resorts boast 54 holes of championship golf, countless shops and activities, and -- naturally -- plenty of prime real estate right on the Pacific. I checked into the Grand Wailea, a supersized resort hotel that was designed to resemble a turtle exiting the ocean (check out the photo above) and gobbles up 40 acres of this coveted land -- and they know how to use it. We're talking 780 rooms, 15 shops, nine separate pools, seven waterslides, five restaurants, a 50,000-square-foot spa and a flock of mynah birds in the palm trees.
A couple of hours after deplaning in Maui and checking in, it was time for dinner. (Side question: Why is the act of getting off an airplane called "deplaning," but exiting a train is not called "detraining"? And why isn't hopping off a truck "detrucking?" English makes no sense sometimes. Back to Maui.) I stayed at the resort and wandered over to one of the island's most acclaimed restaurants, Humuhumunukunukuapua'a. This is not a typo -- it's also the state fish. Locals refer to the spot as "Humuhumu's," but tourists can also have a little fun with the name. For instance, you can say things like HeyI'mFeelingHungrySoIThinkI'llGoTo Humuhumunukunukuapua'a. Rolls right off the tongue. Anyway, the thatched-roof joint sits seaside, and master chef Isaac Bancaco cooks up some of the best surf and turf on the island. On this day Bancaco's daily special happened to be crab-crusted sea bass, and in a word: sensational.
The first round of golf was at the Wailea Gold Course, and it's a great way to start a week if you're into perfect landscaping, challenging greens, exotic wildlife and 18 consecutive holes with a view of the Pacific. The service is also great, and Valerie on the beverage cart was quick to persuade me to ditch the traditional morning bloody mary for a "pink gecko" -- guava juice and vodka. "Good for 100 percent of your daily allowance of vitamin C," she said happily. Who am I to argue?
As great as the course was, the views were even better. I mean, even the driving range has an ocean view.
The Gold is fantastic, but it's not the only act in town, as the Wailea's other courses, the Emerald and Old Blue, also bring the heat when it comes to a resort golf experience. After the Gold, I swung by Old Blue and found a course with wide fairways, sculpted greens and a more budget-friendly price tag -- especially for you and the kids, as the course offers junior rates, family rates, and four-person golf carts. Before there were resort hotels at Wailea -- or much of anything -- there was Old Blue, which opened in 1971. Like the Gold course, ocean views abound. Barry Helle, Old Blue's general manager, said that at Blue these views are known as "visual hazards." That's so good I plan to use it the rest of the trip, and I will probably attribute my soaring scores to these diabolical hazards.
Maui by The Numbers:
12: Hours spent in the air on two flights from New York City to Maui. Totally worth it.
3: Number of trips down the jumbo waterslide at the Grand Wailea pools. It's the longest waterslide in Maui, and I don't care what you say, you're never too old for waterslides.
1: Mai Thais consumed.
4: Lost golf balls at Wailea Gold.
6: Three-putts at the Gold. Those greens are tricky, America.
0: Minutes spent worrying about my total score.
Random snack of the day: Spam Musubi
One of my colleagues tipped me off to this processed meat treat before I departed, and it took all of 24 hours on the island before I stumbled upon it at a hotel café. Musubi is a slab of friend spam pressed into a block of rice and then wrapped in nori, the edible seaweed often found in a sushi roll. Sounds awful, doesn't it? Looks atrocious, right? (Maybe even another form of visual hazard.) I actually liked it. I'm not even ashamed to admit it. And at $2 a pop, it could turn out to be one of the best value snacks of the trip.
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“Ready to get beat up today?”
Those were the prophetic words from Steve Pike, a fellow golf writer and member of my foursome as we exchanged greetings near the first tee of what is arguably Maui’s most famous golf course -– the Plantation Course at Kapalua. I confidently responded that I was ready. Of course, Steve wasn’t the one preparing to hit me in the face -- the course would inflict all the damage on this day.
The PGA Tour will swing through the 7,411-yard, par-73 Plantation on Jan. 5-8 for its annual season-opening Hyundai Tournament of Champions, and the track was tournament-ready during my visit –- and so was the clubhouse grill, the Plantation House Restaurant. If you’re ever fortunate enough to hit the Plantation, arrive early so you can try their eggs Benedict breakfast special and hit a few putts on the practice green near the first tee. Those greens aren’t easy. More on this shortly. .
Standing on the tee at No. 1, I found a straightaway par 4 with the Pacific in the background, but there’s also a ravine jutting into the right side of the fairway that isn’t visible from the tee box. This ravine gobbled up what I thought was a solid drive, producing Lost Ball No. 1 on the day.
The carnage can pile up quickly.
The par-3 second hole usually plays into a cross-wind, and even though the green looked inauspicious from the tee box, it runs hard left-to-right thanks to the grain and breeze. No. 3 is an uphill, blind tee shot. No. 4 is straight into the wind. Come to think of it, I don’t think I saw the same wind direction on consecutive holes, which added to the challenge, frustration, and overall Plantation experience. (Let’s face it, playing Plantation with no wind would be like playing St. Andrews with no rain.)
One thing that does remain consistent from hole to hole is the dramatic landscape. Ocean views, lush forests and deep, rugged ravines are the common setting. But those greens were murder on my scorecard. Let me put it this way: At the Plantation Course it’s very possible that an uphill putt that’s downwind and downgrain moves faster than the comebacker straight down the hill. It’s an optical illusion that can mess with your head.
Because of the views, perfect landscaping, lost balls and mountain of three-putts, the whole experience was probably the most enjoyable miserable round of golf I’ve ever had, if that makes sense. By the time I reached 18, I was wind-burned and tired and had given birth to a unique putting problem I dubbed “green yips,” where I lost all belief in my ability to read a putt of any length. But at 18, I did summon the perfect blend of confidence and stupidity to play the hole from the tips. From there, it’s the longest hole on the PGA Tour at 663 yards.
Upon arriving at my ball, the cart GPS said I had 326 yards left, which meant my drive sailed and rolled 337 yards –- about 70 yards farther than my average drive. It helped that the fairway is essentially a ski slope, and at a course filled with memorable moments, that famous finishing hole truly is the best. I reached the green in regulation, then –- wait for it -- three-putted from 20 feet for a bogey.
Golf is the main attraction in Kapalua, but there are also great spots to grab a bite within minutes of the Kapalua Golf Villas, my comfortable, condo-style accommodations at this stop. The Pineapple Grill is adjacent to the Bay Course –- the second of the two championship courses at the Resort -- and if you don’t order the pineapple upside-down cake at a place called Pineapple Grill, I can’t help you. There’s also a great sushi joint called Sansei right in the town square that has daily specials and was made somewhat famous in 2011 when Ben Crane and Ryan Palmer's karaoke endeavor hit YouTube. The Honolua Store is the resort’s only grocery store, but the prices are reasonable, and it doubles as a restaurant with a budget-friendly lunch.
Then there’s the Kapalua Spa, an off-the-charts luxurious spot that’s frequented by the Tour pros and their wives during the event. If you enjoy relaxing in a horizon pool overlooking the ocean and having a rubdown as a Pacific breeze rustles the palms, you might find this spot worth a stop.
The Bay Course, which hosted an LPGA event in 2008, is not as famous as Plantation, but it is no slouch. Like the Wailea courses, it offers plenty of “visual hazards,” especially on the oceanside par-4 fourth and par-3 fifth holes. On this morning, there were a few sea turtles bobbing around in the water below the fifth tee, and I was also informed that the stately home next to the fifth green belongs to none other than NBC golf announcer Mark Rolfing. Mark Rolfing: I envy you. And yes, that’s a sentence I never thought I’d type.
Anyway, while Plantation heaps abuse on players of all abilities, the Bay Course is much tamer and also offers a set of uber-forward tees dubbed the “Bay Express” that cuts the course down to 1,700 yards and makes a nice option for seniors, juniors and tourists in a hurry.
Before skipping town for the next island stop, I swung by the Kapalua Golf Academy to meet head teaching professional Jerry King. The high-energy instructor is one of Golf Magazine’s Top 100 Teachers, and if he ever decides to give up teaching golf, he could probably run for mayor of Kapalua. I stopped in just to say hello, but when I casually mentioned that my golf game was in a death spiral, he quickly said, “Let me see your action!” and proceeded to offer a few simple tips as I flailed away at a tee station. King’s mantra is to “train it dramatic,” which means overemphasizing each step until it becomes secondhand –- and it’s a fitting expression given that his school sits on a hill with a dramatic view of the Pacific. King also gave me a tip for reading those grainy, island greens that was so good I thought you might like to see it, too.
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When it comes right down to it, playing golf while on vacation is supposed to be fun, right?
After getting knocked senseless by Kapalua’s Plantation Course, I drove about 15 minutes south for some stress-free, scenic resort golf on an excellent course, and that’s exactly what I encountered in Kaanapali, home to two championship courses and the former site of the Senior Skins Game and Golf Channel’s “Big Break Kaanapali.”
My first round was on the Royal course, and it was a good one: picturesque, playable, tricky at times and perfectly enjoyable. No. 1 is a right-bending par 5 with water on the right that can jump up and bite you if you've left your mind back at the beach. The finishing hole is also a brute –- a par 4 with a forced carry over water off the tee and a pond that’s just waiting to gobble up shots that fall short-right of the green. But my favorite was hole No. 5, a straightaway par 4 with a slightly elevated tee and a nice Pacific view as you approach the green. Never get tired of seeing that ocean, you know?
Each of the 18 holes at Royal has a Hawaiian-inspired name that’s always apt and occasionally interesting. For instance, No. 6 is called “Na Pohaku," which means “two stones,” an homage to the pair of large boulders just off the green. (Incidentally, I would’ve named this hole “two chips,” but then again, my short game has been a 14-car pileup this trip.)
Kaanapali likes to look after the locals, and in addition to weekly competitions, the course also offers a "Fit Club,” where tourists and residents can pay $50 a month to walk and play as many holes as they can each afternoon from 4 p.m. to sunset. Also, an excellent steak and seafood restaurant, Roy’s, will soon be moving down the highway to the Kaanapali clubhouse, which should be a coup for the resort and a bonanza for hungry golfers.
David Havens, a PGA teaching pro based at Kaanapali, kicked around a few of the smaller tours, then spent six months teaching golf to children in Bhutan and briefly caddied for Tour pro Brendon de Jonge before eventually settling in Maui. Today he lives at the end of Kaanapali’s driving range and runs a nonprofit, "Spare For Change," that sends golf clubs to underprivileged young golfers around the world.
He’s an affable guy with plenty of stories to fill up a one-hour lesson. We played a breezy round on the Kai Course, a nice track that was less stern than the Royal Course and accessible for players of all abilities. That's where he straightened my tee shots and jump-started my climb back to mediocrity with this tip for handling island winds.
Both courses at Kaanapali are great, and the service is excellent. But with all due respect to AOL founder Steve Case, pop singer Nicole Scherzinger and the cast of “Hawaii Five-O,” the biggest celebrity in the islands might be roaming the fairways in a marshal’s cart at Kaanapali. His name is Tommy Sarashina, and he’s a quick-witted 86-year-old who loves to tell jokes or recount his time fighting in World War II, when he was held prisoner in Russia for nearly two years. Strapped in the back of Sarashina’s cart is a jumbo cooler filled with a drink that immediately took me back to my childhood. He first buzzed up to my group on the 11th hole at the Royal Course.
Remember Tang? It comes in a powder that’s mixed with water to form a sweet, nuclear-pumpkin-colored drink. I probably hadn’t sipped Tang since I was seven years old, but it was just as good as I remembered. Mr. Sarashina is the perfect person to deliver this drink (free of charge to all golfers) and the childhood memories that come with it. In fact, good times and great people are probably what I’ll remember most about Kaanapali. That’s really what resort golf should be about, isn’t it?
At this stop I stayed at the Westin Maui Resort and Spa, which isn’t much more than a long par 5 away from the opening tee on the Royal Course, and it’s yet another luxurious, mammoth oceanside resort hotel. There are several pools, easy access to the beach and a nice little poolside lunch and happy hour spot called 'OnO. But the highlight of the hotel entertainment was the Westin Wailele Polynesian Luau. Here attendance is kept to a relatively modest 200-250, the food is great and fire dancers serve as the climactic act. When you think about it, a good luau really is a quintessential Hawaiian experience.
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Have you ever been to place so remote, so pristine and so luxurious that the whole thing almost felt a little absurd?
Let me take you there.
Just nine miles off the coast of Maui lies Lanai, Hawaii’s smallest inhabited island. For the final phase of my Maui adventure, I hopped a 45-minute ferry ride to Lanai, which was once largely owned by James Dole of the eponymous fruit company and for most of the 20th century was the origin of most of the world’s pineapples.
Today, new ownership has shifted the island’s focus from pineapples to tourism. Not that it’s crowded. Earlier in the week, when I mentioned the subject of Lanai to Maui locals in golf clubhouses, restaurants and poolside cabanas (it’s been a tough week), more than once I was told, to some effect, “Oh I love Lanai. It’s where I go just to get away from it all.” My typical response was a pause to see if they were serious. Come on. Get away from Maui?
Now it all makes sense.
On Lanai you’ll find little more than 3,000 residents, 30 miles of paved roads, zero stop lights, zero fast-food restaurants and one gas station. How remote is Lanai? Residents have no mailboxes, which sounds reasonable when you learn that they also don’t have street addresses. If I lived on Lanai and you wanted to mail me a nice Christmas card, the correct address would be:
Jeff Ritter
Lanai City, Hawaii
Wild turkeys roam free here, and after I checked into the Four Seasons Resort Lanai at Manele Bay, a few of the birds strolled past my ground-level patio. But the Four Seasons, of course, isn’t known for turkeys; it’s the scene and the service. Four examples:
1) Staffers buzz around the pool offering to massage your hands, should you grow weary from all that pesky text-messaging.
2) Ocean-side hales (cabanas) can be rented for meals, where you set your menu and customize the playlist for background music.
3) Spinner dolphins roll into the bay just about every day and you can see them easily from the resort’s crescent-shaped beach.
4) Daytime activity options include croquet, skeet-shooting and gecko hunts.
One quick story: Near the lobby’s front desk there’s a large glass dispenser of “orange-infused water” for guests to sip as they check in or out. After finishing a cup, I asked a pleasant woman behind the desk named Fran where I could find a trash can to dispose of it. She quickly grabbed my empty cup and tossed it into a receptacle behind the counter and said, “There are no trash cans in the lobby, Mr. Ritter. We want our guests to come to us directly for all of their needs.”
That about sums it up.
A three-minute shuttle away was the Challenge at Manele, a faultless resort track that hosts a mere 20,000 rounds a year -- it’s a serene, spotless, almost heavenly place, but it’s not for beginners. (Hey, there are plenty of activities for the whole family back at the resort.) Nearly every par 3 and several approach shots have forced carries, even from the forward tees, and at times the course can get tight. But overall, it’s still a great time.
The first hole is a tepid, straight-ahead par 4, but it gets taxing from there. No. 2 is an uphill, dogleg-left par 4 with not one but two forced carries, No. 3 is a par 3 over lava rocks to a horseshoe-shaped green, and No. 4 is a short par 5 with a bunker smack in the center of the fairway that devours straight tee shots.
No. 5 is the best hole on the front side. It’s the highest point on the course, and the tee shot is blind and straight up to the crest of a hill. But once you get to the top, it’s a 60-foot drop [right] for your approach to the green. The view is fantastic.
Naturally, it’s not the only photo op on the course.
The 12th tee is the most renowned spot at the Challenge because it was the scene of Bill Gates’s 1994 wedding to his wife, Melinda. Here’s more info, and a short-right tee shot that led to a double-bogey.
For his wedding, Gates didn’t just reserve a little spot on the tee box -- the billionaire rented out all of the island’s hotel rooms and the air space above it. (Side question: Why did he feel compelled to block air traffic over an entire island? Was the media really that interested in Bill Gates’s wedding? I thought in 1994 the paparazzi were only tailing Madonna, Julia Roberts and Kato Kaelin.)
The entire back nine has teeth, and the most intimidating tee shot on the course is the par-4 17th [right], which bends to the right around a dramatic, ocean-side cliff.
The Four Seasons Resort Lanai at Manele Bay is one of two jumbo resorts on the island. I took a 20-minute shuttle up the hills to the Lodge at Koele for an excellent lunch at a clubhouse joint called Terrace. The resort is in a setting that, thanks to tall pines and more temperate weather, felt more like the northeastern United States than Hawaii. I didn’t have time to try the resort’s course, the Experience at Koele. Hopefully next time. Hey, you can’t do everything in one trip, you know?
In fact, it’s probably a smart idea to leave an excuse to return to Lanai. And Maui. This trip was an incredible adventure, one I will never forget. A big mahalo to all the folks on Maui and Lanai who assisted me during the journey. As they say in the islands, ahui hou -- until we meet again.
Maui: Winter golf doesn't get any better. Book it, Danno!
By Jessica Marksbury
Golf Magazine, November 13, 2009
Forget about Haleakala, the dormant volcano that climbs 10,000 feet above Maui — the most dominant feature of this island is the great golf. Maui boasts more than a dozen big-time courses, and the island is surprisingly top-heavy with pro tournament venues. As journeys go, this is a long one, but the quality of the offerings definitely justifies the time in the air.
Makena Golf Club (North)
Makena, Maui, Hawaii
6,914 yards, par 72
$115-$210
808-891-4000
www.makenagolf.com
Maui's most underrated course lacks the pro tournament pedigree of its neighbors, but it provides everything else. This 16-year-old layout peaks at the memorable par-5 14th, which twists and tumbles 620 yards downhill to the green. With ocean backdrops at every turn, Makena North deserves to be better known.
Wailea Golf Club (Emerald)
Wailea, Maui, Hawaii
6,825 yards, par 72
$135-$225
808-875-7450
www.waileagolf.com
Wider fairways and fewer all-or-nothing tee shots and approaches make the Emerald a friendlier alternative to Wailea's Gold course. Another product of the Robert Trent Jones II stable, this Emerald sparkles at the 10th and 17th holes, which share a double green next to a lake. Mostly, though, it's one glorious Pacific vista after the next, which makes the healthy green fee easier to bear.
Kapalua Resort (Plantation)
Kapalua, Hawaii
7,411 yards, par 73
$158-$298
808-669-8044
www.kapaluamaui.com
Nestled into the rolling hills of a century-old pineapple plantation, Kapalua is best known for its superb Coore/Crenshaw-designed Plantation course, home to the PGA Tour's season-opening SBS (formerly Mercedes-Benz) Championship. The Plantation's massive, canted fairways and similarly contoured greens have both entertained and baffled the best in the game since the course opened in 1991.
Kapalua Resort (Bay)
Kapalua, Maui, Hawaii
6,600 yards, par 72
$138-$220
808-669-8044
www.kapaluamaui.com
A gentler ride than its sibling Plantation, this 35-year-old Arnold Palmer/Frank Duane creation showed plenty of bite when it hosted an LPGA event in 2008 — only a handful of players broke par for four rounds. The relatively flat greens and resort course ambience are a pleasant counterbalance to the Plantation.
Kaanapali Golf Resort (Royal Kaanapali)
Kaanapali, Maui, Hawaii
6,693 yards, par 71
$120-$235
808-661-3691
www.kaanapali-golf.com
Home to the Wendy's Champions Skins Game and the television reality show The Big Break, Royal Kaanapali has been in the limelight since its 1962 creation. The layout bears the classic imprints of its creator, Robert Trent Jones Sr., with broad, boldly bunkered fairways and large, sloped greens. Following a $13 million renovation in 2005-06, it's better than ever, even if it is short by modern standards.
Wailea Golf Club (Gold)
Wailea, Maui, Hawaii
7,078 yards, par 72
$135-$225
808-875-7450
www.waileagolf.com
The sternest challenge of Wailea's three courses is this 1994 Robert Trent Jones II design, with steep-lipped bunkers, vast, heaving greens and prehistoric lava rock walls forming the bulk of the test. Home to the Wendy's Champions Skins Game from 2001-2007, famous footsteps include Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson, who teamed up to win here twice. For those with less famous footsteps—or those who struggle with forced carries—the ocean views will soothe.
Stay, Eat, Do
The Ritz-Carlton Kapalua (808-669-6200, www.ritzcarlton.com/kapalua; rooms from $299) has two luxurious options for spa lovers: the Ritz-Carlton Spa onsite, or the brand-new Kapalua Spa next door. At sunset, trust the Banyan Tree to deliver a stellar oceanfront dining experience. The mile-long stretch of Kaanapali Beach is home to a collection of resorts, condos and timeshares, but the Sheraton Maui (808-661-0031, www.sheraton-maui.com; rooms from $240) is still among the best. Other worthy diversions include snorkeling at famous Black Rock and shopping at nearby Whalers Village.
In the heart of Maui's "desert" region (as the locals call Wailea) sits the low-key Four Seasons Resort Maui (808-874-8000, www.fourseasons.com/maui; rooms from $395). With only 370 rooms and suites, the Four Seasons offers vacationers a more intimate feel than Maui's other mega-resorts. The property's newest restaurant, DUO, is a poolside eatery where Kobe beef steak entrees, complimentary cotton candy for dessert and sunset views are all menu staples.
A 2008-09 Golf Magazine Premier Resorts Gold Award winner, Grand Wailea Resort Hotel & Spa (808-875-1234, www.grandwailea.com; rooms from $369) is renowned not only for its spa but for its family-friendly pool complexes (think waterslides, rapids, rope swings and swim-up bars).
Playing Golf on Maui
The postcard Maui is on display during the PGA Tour's opener at Kapalua, but there's plenty more golf on the island's leeward side
By Josh Sens
Even casual golfers are familiar with Kapalua, the telegenic first stop on the PGA Tour calendar. With Tiger in the forefront and whales in the background, it is the epitome of golf in Hawaii.
But a short drive away on Maui's leeward side, the weather's even better and the golf can hold it's own. Under the Haleakala volcano, you'll find five terrific resort courses that overlook the ocean, and shouldn't be overlooked by visitors. And if the layouts aren't as demanding as the Plantation Course at Kapalua, so what? No one goes to Maui to get stressed.
The Golf
Makena (North and South courses)
North: 6,914 yards, par 72, South: 7,014, par 72;
Greens fees: $185
808-891-4000, www.makenagolf.com
The two courses at Makena would leave Paul Revere low on lanterns: they go by land and by sea. The tighter North shoots inland, up and down the slopes of Haleakala, its swerving fairways bordered by gullies, streams and long fingers of lava rock. Par 3s are a strength here, including the downhill 183-yard fourth, with a narrow green fronted by a lake. But the par-5 14th (620 yards in length, 200 feet in elevation change) is nothing to sneeze at. From start to finish, the ocean, in sight but never in play, makes for a beautiful and benign distraction. The longer but less penal South Course builds in drama as the round pro gresses. A breeching humpback in the distance might be your target line on several holes. At Makena the conditions aren't as immaculate as at Kapalua, but the layouts hold their own.
Grand Wailea Resort (Gold Course)
7,078 yards, par 72;
Greens fees: $190 ($160 for resort guests)
800-856-0501, www.waileagolf.com
Each year when the Champions Tour plays its Skins Game here, the fat-bellies blitz the course with birdies. But that's deceptive. This is the toughest of Wailea's three layouts. Robert Trent Jones Jr. dotted the course with more than 100 traps, and none of them are for decoration. Many are "illusion bunkers" designed to look like they're guarding the flagstick when they actually stand well before the green. The course winds through swaying island grasses and past papohaku (lava-rock walls built by ancient Hawaiians). The back nine can drain you, but the setting is so pretty and the weather so balmy, you never really feel like you're getting beaten up.
Grand Wailea (Emerald/Blue courses)
Emerald: 6,825, par 72; Greens fees: $190 ($160 for resort guests)
Blue: 6,765 yards, par 72; Greens fees: $160 ($135 for resort guests)
888-328-6284, www.waileagolf.com
The Emerald is the island's Augusta, with bougainvillea everywhere. From the nosebleed tee on the par-4 sixth, your drive enjoys the hang time of a hotair balloon. Then it's an awkward downhill mid-iron to green that's difficult to judge and even tougher to hold. This course befriends beginners but is still a tough test from the tips.
The Blue looks up at Haleakala, whose foothills lend swing to the wide fairways. The oldest course at Wailea won't break you with distance or difficulty. At an LPGA event here a few years back, several players were warned for slow play—they were watching the whales.
The Card Wrecker
Wailea Gold Course 10th hole,
415 yards, par 4
Robert Trent Jones Jr. calls his Gold Course a "masculine" design, since it appeals to the big-hitter's urge to blast it. But the on the 10th, you ought to set machismo aside. At 415 yards, it plays downhill and downwind, so length is not the issue. Trouble lurks in fairway bunkers on the left and a steep drop-off front right of the green. To find out how to play it, we asked the architect himself.
Robert Trent Jones Jr. on how to play it:
"The bunkers have been designed to intimidate, with steep faces and often presenting uneven lies. So the first thing to do is avoid the fairway bunkers. This might mean keeping the driver in the bag and taking a club you can control. A good tee shot will leave you a mid- to short-iron in. Aim for the middle of the green. Avoid short and right."
Local Knowledge
What to do
Spa Grande at the Grand Wailea offers a Shiatsu Back Walk Massage, in which a bare foot therapist works your body with her feet. It's a perfect post-golf treat. $225 for 80 minutes; $275 for 110 minutes.
Maui Ocean Center is devoted to island marine life. Among the coolest exhibits is a real water hazard: a 12-foot tiger shark. Admission: $22 for adults, $15 for kids 3-12.
808-270-7000, www.mauioceancenter.com
Maui Eco Tours relies on kayaks, not motorized boats. Guides take you whale watching, swimming with dolphins and snorkeling with turtles.
866-891-2223, www.mauiecotours.com
Where to Eat
If you're hankering for seared foie gras sushi, Sansei Seafood Restaurant & Sushi Bar (1881 S. Kihei Road, 808-879-0004) is your spot. You'll also find traditional Japanese dishes, but the focus is on fresh food, innovatively prepared.
Joe's on Wailea Ike Place (808-875-7767) serves comforting, casual food. Try the baked crab dip and meatloaf with wine.
The atmosphere at Tommy Bahama Cafe (3750 Wailea Alunai, 808-875-8893) is a little Jimmy Buffetesque, but there's no better place for a pulled pork sandwich and a cocktail at the bar.
Where to Stay
The GOLF Magazine Gold Medal-winning Grand Wailea stands out for its luxury, even on an island known for high-end hotels. Rooms start at $315. Guests get a slight discount on greens fees. 808-875-1234, www.grandwailea.com
View Finder
In search of great golf, palm-sweating adventure and picturesque vistas? Try Maui and Lanai
By Matt Ginella
Golf Digest, January 2009
Almost two miles of parallel zip lines (tours start at $130 per person) are among the many new attractions at Kapalua. In January 2008, the Ritz-Carlton, Kapalua finished a $180 million "transformation," the most expensive makeover of any Ritz property in the world.
The five-star resort renovated all 463 guest rooms (starting at $395 a night). It fixed existing dining options by giving them a "contemporary expression," enlarged lanais and improved views, and it added a sushi bar and a lobby bar. Adjustments were made to the 10,000- square-foot, three-tiered pool by updating the cabanas (now with flat-screen tele-visions and refrigerators) and adding a children's pool. A new 17,500-square-foot spa with 15 treatment rooms opened in June, and there's Jean-Michel Cousteau's Ambassadors of the Environment, an education program that allows guests of all ages to explore tide pools, snorkel, participate in underwater photography and whale watch. The other lodging option is the Kapalua Villas: 260 one-, two- and three-bedroom units that start at $339 per night.
Kapalua opened in 1975 as one golf course. Although golf now shares the spotlight with these other amenities and activities, it's still the star of the show.
The Bay Course hosted an LPGA Tour event for the first time in October. It tips out at 6,600 yards and was the original golf course on the property. With several oceanside holes, it's an above-average resort course, but it's no longer why serious golfers bring their clubs to Kapalua.
The Plantation Course is the main attraction. It's No. 33 on Golf Digest's list of America's 100 Greatest Public Courses, and in January it will host the start of the PGA Tour's season for the 11th year in a row: the Mercedes-Benz Championship. Granted, with Tiger and Phil not playing, the firepower playoffs such as Woods over Els in 2000 have been replaced by last year's playoff between Chopra and Stricker. Names like those hurt TV ratings and attendance but have no effect on you and me, the travelers. It's still a must-get-to course before you die, with ridiculous views of neighboring islands Molokai and Lanai. The front nine is underrated and often overshadowed by two of the most famous and fun to play back-to-back finishing holes in the game. The 17th is a 486-yard downhill—and usually downwind—par 4. The 18th is a 663-yard downhill—and usually downwind—par 5. Even shorter hitters can roll it out to 300 yards off the tee.
When I played the Plantation in July, the typical 20-mile-an-hour wind didn't blow, which left the course vulnerable. I played from the Championship tees (7,263 yards) and shot my best round of the year—six birdies for an even-par 73. I figured "it" out, if for only one round in 2008. The rest of the rounds were more reflective of my 8-handicap (and, on some days, 18).
As good as the views are from the golf course, another terrific view is from Jerry King's hitting bay at the golf school at Kapalua. King is a six-time teacher of the year in Hawaii and appears in the instruction pages of this magazine. His "office" is a rather romantic spot to hone your skills. King and his staff offer group and individual instruction. The half-day golf school is 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. ($345 per person plus lunch).
Trumping even King's view of the Pacific abyss—a little less romantic, a little more traumatic—is the resort's most scenic spot, at the top of the property. This is where I rested comfortably in a suspended seat hanging from a thick cable. Well above the tree-filled valleys, you can go as fast as your thumping heart desires. Instructors will ask you to put your feet on either side of a railing before they'll give you a countdown: "Three . . . two . . . one . . . " Like a bull bursting into the ring of a rodeo, they'll throw open the gate and yell: "Zip away!" You're free and feel as though you'd like to take that ride all the way to the ocean. The view gets even better if you remember to open your eyes.
LOCAL KNOWLEDGE
BANYAN FAN
The award-winning signature restaurant of Kapalua is the Banyan Tree. It features Pacific cuisine with a casual poolside setting and a new outdoor bar and lounge. Ask for Robert to be your waiter. Robert loves his job, and you'll appreciate his complete knowledge of the menu and wine list as well as his charming presentation.
THE CHALLENGE
Once you've mastered the Bay and Plantation courses (or not), book a day trip by ferry in the morning from Maui to Lanai ($60 round trip, go-lanai.com). A shuttle will take you to and from the Challenge at Manele, which is a Jack Nicklaus Signature Course, ranked No. 34 on Golf Digest's list of America's 100 Greatest Public Courses, and offers gut-check shots over and around steep ocean- front cliffs.
PRIVATE EYES
There's only one 18-hole private golf course on the island of Maui: King Kamehameha. But not for long. Coming soon (Kapalua's not giving a definitive date) is the Tom Fazio-designed Mauka Golf Course on the site of what used to be the Village course at Kapalua.