Golden Days For Kaua‘i Golfers
Moana boasts a half-mile of oceanfront golf
If you’re a golfer like me, boy, are you pumped about the opportunity to play Kaua’i Lagoons’ brand spankin’ new Kiele Moana Course.
On Monday, May 23 it finally opened after years of preparation. The ‘Moana’ is being called the longest stretch of continuous ocean holes in Hawaii.
“We’re excited to bring the Kiele golf experience back to Kauai Lagoons,” director of golf Scott Ashworth says. “The half-mile stretch of holes sitting on the Pacific Ocean is something we hope our guests will rank at the very top of their golf experiences.”
The course added three new holes to its back nine, including an ocean hole and they also renovated six others. All of the changed holes feature TifEagle putting surfaces to go along with new bunker sand and design.
The reopening marks the first time in several years the Kiele Course, regularly ranked as a Top-100 course by leading national golf publications, is fully intact and ready to play.
And if you need yet another reason (I don’t) to try out Moana, just look who led this project – arguably the greatest golfer ever, Jack Nicklaus. The “Golden Bear” roamed the course this past summer.
“The new holes are going to fit in nicely with what golfers have come to expect from the Kiele Golf Course, great golf holes with beautiful ocean panoramic views,” Nicklaus said.
Kauai courses getting the love
It seems pretty apparent that the love affair between the rest of the country and our golf courses continues to grow.
Three Robert Trent Jones Jr. courses from the golf destination co-op “Kaua’i: Discover Golf’s Ultimate Island Green” were voted onto Golf Digest‘s biennial “America’s Greatest Courses” by state list.
Princeville’s Prince Course, which is currently undergoing a green and bunker refurbishment project and will reopen in the fall, is ranked No. 4 in the state. It’s also included on the magazine’s “100 Greatest Public Courses,” making the cut from roughly 13,500 public playing spots across the U.S.
In other best-of-state rankings, the Makai Golf Club at the St. Regis Princeville Resort took the No. 13 spot and Poipu Bay filled in right behind at No. 14.
The Makai Course recently underwent a multi-million dollar renovation that featured the introduction of Seashore Paspalum turf grass on all of its tees, fairways and greens.
Poipu Bay, meanwhile, former home of the PGA’s Grand Slam of Golf, debuted new Seashore Paspalum greens to rave reviews in December, to go along with newly refreshed clubhouse décor and spaces.
And finally, here’s a great way to help out some great causes and try one of the aforementioned courses.
The Makai Golf Club is hosting the third annual Westin Princeville Ocean Resort Villas Charity Golf Tournament on Sunday, June 26. The four-person-team scramble costs $100 per person and includes golf, cart, 19th hole luncheon, awards and entertainment. Registration begins at 7 a.m. and the shotgun start is at 8 a.m.
The deadline to register for this event is June 1. All proceeds from the tournament will be used to support the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life, the Hawaii Hotel and Lodging Association, the Kaua’i Charity Walk and the Kauai Food Bank.
Golf doesn’t get any better.
