The older of two 18-hole courses at the Ka'anapali Golf Resort, the Royal Ka'anapali layout was Robert Trent Jones Snr’s first Hawaiian design back in 1962.
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The older of two 18-hole courses at the Ka'anapali Golf Resort, the Royal Ka'anapali layout was Robert Trent Jones Snr’s first Hawaiian design back in 1962.
Ka'anapali (Royal Ka'anapali)
Robert Trent Jones would eventually lay four golf courses across the Hawaiian islands but the first came with the Royal Kā’anapali at the Maui resort of the same name.
Jones could certainly utilize natural beauty when creating a golf course, however offering a challenge to the skilled golfer was always the first thing on his mind during that era of his career. Just two years after its opening, Royal Kā’anapali hosted the Canada Cup (seems ironic, we know) during 1964.
Although the course only measures to just beyond 6,700 yards now, the course’s signature holes were certainly intimidating to the best players of the time. No. 17 is, as at many championship courses, is both the shortest and the most intimidating par three on the course. Measuring 155 yards, it is a full carry over an inland pond to a green that is surrounded by sand on all other sides.
The closer is a 440-yard par four with water down its entire left side, which imposes itself particularly close to the green. Even the opening hole is no walk in the park: a 520-yard par five, the aforementioned pond travels down its right side...hope you got the slice out of your system at the range!
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