Maui's Top Ranked Layout To Undergo Major Enhancements

Kapalua's Plantation Course will close in mid-February to implement a multimillion dollar enhancement project

The home of the PGA TOUR’s Sentry Tournament of Champions will close February 11th for nine months of renovations. The idea here is to refine and revitalize the 27-year-old layout which is perennially ranked as one of the top 100 golf courses in the world.

Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw, the original Plantation Course design team, will assist with the extensive course enhancement project. Troon’s Design/ Development/ Agronomy team, as well as long-time Maui resident and Golf Channel personality Mark Rolfing, will also provide input on the project.

 

Coore, Crenshaw and Rolfing Will Be Involved - Image Courtesy Mark Rolfing / Twitter

 

“All of the Plantation Course refinements will be focused on improving the playability of the golf course for our guests, while also providing new challenges for PGA TOUR professionals,” said Alex Nakajima, general manager, Kapalua Golf & Tennis.

“For all of the changes, it’s important to note that the overall Plantation Course layout and routing will remain the same.”

Still, the planned changes are extensive.

It starts with the greens and green complexes. All will be reconstructed with the putting surfaces being refined to create more hole locations without changing the character of the greens. Each will then be replanted with Tif Eagle Bermuda grass which is well suited to the Maui climate. Existing tee boxes will be rebuilt and additional tees will be added, including a significant number of new forward/family tees. New combined back tees will be added for holes 3 and 9. The grass for the tees will be Celebration Bermuda which will also be used in fairways and rough. They will also be doing work on the bunkers with some being eliminated or relocated.

“This will be a very thoughtful restoration and refining process, but it’s not a redesign. We are very happy with the way the course looks and the way it has gone through the past nearly three decades,” said Bill Coore.

“It’s like when you have a special piece of art or something really special to you, and you get a chance to dust it off and make it new again.”

Mark Rolfing in a Twitter post said that we should expect to see firmer fairways allowing the ball to run.

In addition to the on-course enhancements, the iconic Plantation Course Clubhouse will also be updated.

 

Image Courtesy Kapalua.com

 

With the project expected to be completed by this November, the award-winning course would be ready to host the 2020 Sentry Tournament of Champions in early January.

For those visiting before November, the Bay Course - long dubbed as “Hawaii’s favorite resort course” - is a great option.

The Bay has also been undergoing some changes which are now complete. Hole order has been changed to improve pace of play and create a memorable and challenging final stretch of holes. The new first hole is the former 7th hole – an uphill 355-yard par 4 that will get golfers off to a good start. The new 16th and 17th holes (formerly holes 4 and 5) play along and over the ocean, with the par-3 17th hole Maui’s only over-the-ocean par 3. The new 18th hole (formerly the 6th hole) is a challenging, and intriguing uphill par 5.

 

The breathtaking par three 17th hole on the Bay Course is the only hole to play over the ocean on Maui. Image Courtesy Kapalua.com

 

The Bay Course Golf Shop has been relocated to the newly enhanced Village Center at Kapalua. The Village Center is now home to the Bay Golf & Resort Shops, the Taverna Restaurant, the Kapalua Golf Academy and administrative offices.

For more information, visit www.GolfAtKapalua.com or call 1-877-KAPALUA.