Plantation back open

[burritos4breakfast]

Plantation is back open. i wanted to play it before the tournament bc you know they'd be harping on it all coverage. Big changes were the whole course was replanted with celebration bermuda and they now have all new tiffeagle bermuda greens. draining system for all bunkers was also improved with new sand. First impression was the course is definitely improved from a condition standpoint with the much needed new grass, but i think the strategy and playing changes are overblown and not very noticeable, at least for the resort player. They really needed the new greens as some were in shocking condition (eg. 14), big improvement there. the new tiff eagle greens now are not as grainy as before as that was something to really pay attention too in the past at plantation. all the new tee boxes and fariways look fantastic with the new celebration bermuda, and the sand played like how you would expect new bunkers to play, (nice).

1st green looking pure

11 tee

14 green desperately needed to be redone. gorgeous now

not a huge golf architecture buff but i have played this course a good amount over the last several years so i have a good sense of how it plays. when i read a list though of all the changes on kapaluas website only a few stood out when i was recalling my round. for the pros theyll have a new tee box on 4 for the blind tee shot there, resort tee was moved a little bit too.

4th tee box viewed from 3rd green

5th they added a center line bunker to try and make one of the easiest holes on the course play a little tougher. if you play a fade though it makes the perfect target for you to land on the right side of the fairway for a shorter approach and shot at eagle.

There's a new tee box on 6 for the pros, hopefully makes it a little more difficult for them so they cant just bomb it down the hill.

view from 6th pro tee box, i try to fade it off the right edge of the left bunker

they added a fariway bunker on 16 that also stood out for me but that was pretty much it.

approach view on 16

 

A lot of the greens were expanded or lessened by some amount too but they were so big before i didn't really notice it. some of the slopes were supposedly lessened too but for me they are still tricky and you can have some mini golf type putts if you leave it on the wrong level of the green (think 4,13). up the mountain still slow and down the mountain still fast.

 

Will be interesting to see how the pros score but think theyll still go super low with the par 73 especially if they get no wind like its been in years past. dont think too many holes will play all that different and they should make even more putts with the new greens. New rate is 369 for non resort guest, up 30$ from before. restaurant is still under remodel for another couple weeks. Course is cart path only until the tour comes so it really should pop on TV. I think if you really liked it before you'll like it even more now with the new grass and conditions. If it wasn't your favorite track in the past, the new changes won't sway your opinion but you won't be able to gripe about the poor condition of the course anymore. still a pain when the trades are gusting hard, make sure your lag putting is on point.

[burritos4breakfast]

other highlights:

7 is a lot of fun. bombs away.

approach on 12

walking to approach on 17

18

they also got some new sweet golf carts

 

 

 

[aloha b.]

Nice report and pictures, Mahalo.

My wife and I were on Lanai for 5 days in October and 4 days in Wailea. Couldn't golf as I had a health scare in August and I'm just starting to practice again.

[jkinger89]

Wow, those fairways and tees look absolutely pure

[nolayup]

Recently played, bunch of hoopla for getting essentially 99% of the same course. For how long the course was closed maybe I was expecting more. Most the down time was probably watching grass grow

[Tha Carter]

Playing it for the first time the week after the tournament. Playing Bay course too, anyone know if it's beat up because of more people playing over there?

[burritos4breakfast]

I agree other than the condition (which was pretty poor before) and less grainy greens you're not going to notice much of a difference playing/strategy wise. They'll definitely make a huge deal of it im sure on the tournament broadcast though lol

[burritos4breakfast]

Well they just replanted the entire plantation course 6 months ago so compared to bay bay will definitely not be in the same shape as plantation. Bay has some sneaky fun holes though I always have a good time playing bay you don't get as beat up from the wind and undulations like you do at plantation

[Rory4Pres]

Thanks for sharing the new course pics OP. Got the privilege of playing here about 5 years ago and absolutely loved it!! What a treat! It was fairly windy and tough and I wouldn't have it any other way!

Last time we were there it was closed for the renovation. Here's a picture of it at that point for reference to how incredible it looks now.

For those of you that haven't been, I strongly recommend eating lunch or dinner at their restaurant, it's very good!

[Carbo56]

Plantation is one of my favorites, I've played there many times over the years and I was looking forward to another trip in 2020. But I just checked the web site and they juiced the greens fees up to $329 for a resort guest, and no replay rate, btw. That's crazy even for Hawaii. The used to have a great three-day pass for around $650 with unlimited golf on either course. Now they just have a three day package for $730 with three rounds (not unlimited) and you can only once on the Plantation.

Are there any ways to get a better deal?