Each year, the Plantation Course at Kapalua Golf Club is showcased as the site of the PGA Tour SBS Championship, which includes an elite field of the PGA Tour's winners from the previous season. What players and viewers alike see is a golf course on a grand scale - a par-73 course that plays to 7,411 yards from the tips, with a USGA rating of 75.6 and a slope rating of 140. The course sits atop the northwest corner of the West Maui mountains, and sprawls over pineapple plantation fields and breathtaking natural geographic formations.
The Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw-designed course opened in 1991 and has won just about every award in the golf world, including a Gold Medal Award from GOLF Magazine and ranking among the best in the state by Golf Digest. And, now, the course has been renovated to be new and improved.
The greens have been re-grassed with TifEagle Bermuda grass and some subtle changes were also made to five of the greens, including adding bunkers. The result is better conditions and a more playable course, with greens that roll true and fast.
One of the most noteworthy and dramatic of Plantation's 18 holes is the par-5 No. 18. Despite playing downhill, the hole plays to 663 yards, making it the longest hole on the PGA Tour and a "monster'' to most golfers, even from the more forward tees.
Another especially noteworthy and memorable hole is No. 8, a par-3 that requires a carry over a gorge to a green fronted by a steep bunker and even more trouble to the right and left. And, of course, the tee shot almost always plays against the island's troublesome trade winds.
The resort also features some impressive practice facilities, including 85,000 square feet of driving range teeing area, an 18-hole putting course, and greenside fairway practice bunkers.
For instruction, the resort offers the Kapalua Golf Academy - one of the most complete state-of-the-art golf schools in the state. The facility was designed by PGA pro Hale Irwin, and includes a 23-acre practice area for every aspect of the game, including putting, chipping, wedge and bunker play, as well as full-swing and specialty shots. There's also an indoor hitting bay with video swing analysis.
The Kapalua Resort is also undergoing renovations and future initiatives, and offers amenities and activities such as retail boutique shopping, tennis, a world-class spa & beach club, a mountain adventure center with horseback riding, hiking and rainforest tours, and three white-sand beaches.
For dining, the resort offers eleven restaurants and lounges with an extensive, multi-cultural array of culinary choices, ranging from island-style to regional, Mediterranean, Asian and Pacific Rim fare.
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