Magical Kaua‘i – Golf at the Ultimate Clash of Land and Sea
By David Wood

When the Pacific Northwest weather turns foreboding as the days grow shorter, we light-deprived folks need a jolt of Vitamin D. Kaua‘i offers the perfect antidote to the Pacific Northwest winter blues. Peaceful, non-touristy, tranquil, and shockingly beautiful, Kaua‘i is as good as it gets for a golfer like me who gets his “Aloha spirit” with the use of a Vardon grip.

Poipu Bay
As the home of the Grand Slam of Golf from 1994 to 2006 – a perennial annuity for Tiger Woods – the Grand Hyatt Kaua‘i Resort and Spa’s Poipu Bay is living proof that big-time resort golf doesn’t have to be stuffy. If those smiling folks around the hotel and golf course were any friendlier you’d think you were a long lost relative.

The idyllic hotel and its 602 rooms (each with their own lanai) rest on a hillside overlooking dramatic Keoneloa Bay. Known as one of the top tropical resorts in the world, there is a quaint feeling to the sprawling grounds as the hotel adheres to the island’s unofficial building code that “no buildings can be bigger than the tallest coconut tree.” As much as I loved exploring the enchanting grounds – the chance to play Poipu Bay had me thrilled in anticipation.

The Robert Trent Jones Jr. design makes wonderful use of the rolling terrain. Surely he knew he was given an exquisite locale in which to ply his trade and the result celebrates his deft touch. The outstanding holes on the front side run from the par-5 524-yard 2nd holding the high ground of the property as you play up and away from the sea in splendid isolation down to the par-4 405-yard 9th – the hardest hole on the course.

The uphill 9th parallels the sea and plays directly into the teeth of the trade winds. Most of the problems are on your approach as the severely raised green kicks away any weak approach shots not hit with authority. The 9th is a humbler. Take your bogey or worse and proceed to 10th tee and its panoramic ocean view.

There is a crescendo feel to the backside as the holes get more dramatic and the ocean gets closer. The clash of cymbals starts at the downhill tee-shot from a seaside cliff on the par-4 15th. The fairway borders the heiau (places of worship) and the ancient stone walls protecting that sacred ground. Steer your drive right so as not to anger the Gods.

The symphony continues at the wonderful downhill 225-yard par-3 17th.. Once successfully on the 17th green, take a moment to look back to the 15th tee-box up on the distant bluff and tell me there is a more beautiful spot on the planet. No way. It’s hard not to set aside your clubs and start doing the hula. Is there a more picturesque setting to play golf in the world? Not in my travels.
(www.poipubaygolf.com, 800-858-6300)

Princeville
Not to be outrivaled on the equally majestic North Shore of Kaua‘i is Princeville at Hanalei – an elegant resort overlooking a sea vista so beguiling it almost doesn’t seem real. The hotel sits high on a cliff with Bali Hai – a wondrous thrust of volcanic land –standing watch over Hanalei Bay. The sweeping inlet is as pretty as they come.

Robert Trent Jones Jr. was also given the commission to create golf at Princeville and he painted a 45-hole masterpiece. It’s the Prince Course that gets the oohs and ahs and deservedly so. This is golf on the wild and wooly side – Hawaiian-style.  With a course rating of 75.2 from the black tees and slope of 140, make sure you make an honest assessment on the state of your game (as painful as that is) and pick the right tees (there are 5 sets). With several forced carries and jungle rough framing many of the landing areas, the wrong tee-box could ruin your vacation – even here.

The Prince course shares top billing with Kaua‘i in all its rugged glory. Named for Prince Albert – the son of the King Kamehameha who established the Kingdom of Hawaii in 1810 – there is indeed a royal feeling to the land. There are awe-inspiring vistas throughout the layout as dramatic fog-covered mountains semi-circle the course. My favorite was the locally coined “Batman” with its two pointy peaks at the pinnacle indeed looking like a verdant tribute to the Caped Crusader. The Prince Course crosses flourishing ravines and cascades down steep crevasses – you almost feel the need to leave a trail of breadfruit to make sure you can find your way back to the clubhouse.

The first hole from the white tees (where I sensibly played from for once in golfing life) at 408 yards sets the tone immediately. Your drive needs to be placed between an unplayable canyon on the right and dense jungle on the left. If this feat is performed successfully despite the normal first tee jitters, the second-shot is even more demanding. The tiny green, looking the size of a Frisbee, is protected by a watery gulley in front. Good luck.

The two ocean view holes – the wonderful par-4 6th with its devious two-tiered green perched on a sea bluff and the par-3 7th (a wolfish par-5 in par-3 clothing due to the howling wind) – allow you to take in the grandeur of peaceful Hanalei Bay from a perfect vantage point. That tranquil scene is alone worth the green fee.

The Prince Course isn’t golf for the faint of heart. An easier time is to be had on Princeville’s Makai Course’s three nines, also built by Mr. Jones. The Makai Course was the first project Jones did on his own and stand as expert testimony that he learned his trade well from his famous father.

While the 27 holes aren’t nearly as dramatic as the Prince Course, Makai is top quality golf with numerous seaside holes. The Ocean nine has one of the most spectacular par-3s in the world.  The 204-yard 7th hole plays from a tee-box that juts out over the ocean like a perch in a birdcage. With the prevailing wind into your face, it takes a mighty wallop across the deep chasm to find the green. It’s do-or-die. A score of 3 there is one of the best pars you’ll ever make in golf!
(www.princeville.com, 800-826-1105)

Kaua‘i Lagoons
Both the Grand Hyatt Resort and Spa and Princeville at Hanalei are in the upper reaches of travel budgets. A better financial deal is to be had at the Kaua‘i Marriott Resort and Beach Club – a drive and 5-iron from the airport. The comfortable resort resides on peaceful (and scenic!)Kalapaki Beach and Nawiliwili Bay and features the largest swimming pool in Hawai’i. With 26,000 square feet of aquatic fun, it’s the perfect spot for water lovers and sun worshippers.

In addition to all the aquatic fun, the Jack Nicklaus designed Kaua‘i Lagoons Golf Club at the resort is 36 holes of excellence. Mr. Nicklaus designs supremely testing golf courses. Jack must think we’re all better at the game he himself mastered than we actually are. A case in point is the superb, but difficult, Kiele Course.

The first five holes are industrial strength, especially the first par-3, the 219-yard 5th. Played over a dense mango forest and a majestic mountain backdrop on the near horizon, the green looks as if it’s in a different area code. Two ominous bunkers flank the green short right and alongside the entire left side. The hole is tougher than third year Calculus.

Two Kiele ocean view holes – both on the back nine – are stunners. The 472-yard par-4 12th thankfully plays shorter due to the tailwind. Tee it high and let the gales take it as far as the trade winds allow. Your second shot must clear the bunkers guarding the front while the back is framed by a wall of ocean blue only broken up by a lonely picturesque lighthouse out on the last bit of terra firma. It’s a superb hole and view.

Not to be outdone is the gorgeous, but sinister, 13th – a downhill par-3 of 207-yards, with your tee-shot playing over a lovely rugged cove of crashing surf. This is another glory-or-disaster hole. You’re either on the postage stamp green or reloading in the well-used drop zone. Take in the splendor of it all and throw away your scorecard which is probably chockablock with double bogeys (or worse) by now. This is just another impressive Kaua‘i scene that makes golf seem trivial in the grand scheme. (www.kauailagoonsgolf.com, 800-634-6400)

Polynesians believe that every day spent on the ocean adds a day to your life. I’d like to add to their ancient lore by saying that visiting Hawai’i – especially mesmerizing Kaua‘i – increases your longevity as well. The resorts are among the best in the world, the seascapes have no rival, the sweet fragrance of the lush flora wafts through the trade winds, and the golf courses are of the highest order. If visiting Kaua‘i isn’t a good enough reason to live another day, I don’t know what is.