Maui trip in a week

Montana hacker · January 27, 2013

I will be going to Maui next week and I would like to know what course would be good for a new player. I am a new player who just started golf last summer. I have a handicap around 100. I played around 40 rounds last summer and just started to figure out my swing. I do not want to slow anyone down on the course but I cannot go to Hawaii without playing a round or two. What time of day would the least busy? I will probably play by myself or maybe one other person. Any advice will be appreciated.

scratchswinger · January 27, 2013

What part of the island do you plan to play at? Maui is big!

AC168 · January 27, 2013

Kapalua -- Plantation in particular is really nice. Wailea is nice also. Even if you are a beginner at the Plantation course it should be OK because it seems that a lot of people are on vacation there -- i.e. the pace of play is slow, but the views are so nice that people don't seem to mind as much.

Cgmorri · January 27, 2013

Kapalua & Wailea, are great course, depending on how much you want to spend? Those two would be upper end, except maybe Old Blue at Wailea. I suggest you use Golfnow, the Dunes at Maui Lani is a decent course/price. Kahili is good, but always seems to be pretty windy there. Pukalani up in the hills is decent. If you don't mind paying the price, definitiely play Kapalua Plantation, Wailea or Kaanapali. I went to Pinehurst last spring, could have played #2, decided not to because I wasn't playing well, regretted it ever since. Maui is one of our favorite golf vacation destinations, enjoy.

Montana hacker · January 27, 2013

[quote name='scratchswinger' timestamp='1359314550' post='6309287']
What part of the island do you plan to play at? Maui is big!
[/quote]I will be staying at the Hyatt just north of Lahaina but will be in Kihie alot. I wouldnt mind if it took an hour to get to a nice course.

arkyrab · January 27, 2013

You will be at Kaanapali. The north and south courses are right there and both courses have interesting history. The north course Is the better of the two. Big Break was at the south for the women 2 years ago. Kapalua is within 30 minutes. Wailea an hour or so the other way.

HLore · January 28, 2013

Take the ferry and play Challenge of Manele, you won't regret it

dgrelecki · January 28, 2013

If you're just playing a round or two I would suggest kapalya plantation. It's wide open which helps the higher handicaps. Huge greens too.

Do yourself a favor and:
Make a reservation at the plantation house for dinner at sunset
Eat breakfast at the gazebo (be ready to stand in line a bit...great whale views), eat the pineapple pancakes
Make the drive to eat at Mama's Fishhouse- not many menus in the world have the name of the fish, fisherman that caught it, location and exact time.

Have fun!!!

Tourstaged · January 28, 2013

Kapalua Plantation is a must.

When I played, my wife played along. She hardly plays golf but still managed to keep up with us and sometimes played best ball on occasion. The Plantation course is wide that I think it will favor any level of golfer. You'll have fun hitting drives on the downhill downwind holes and feel like a champ! Also it gave me a different perspective when I see the Pro's tear that course up.

Have fun and enjoy!

mysteriousmaskedman · January 28, 2013

If you're going to play one round then play the Plantation course as others have said. The views are incredible and playing a PGA stop course is a ton of fun. Check ezlinks.com for potential of a decent deal. If you play in the afternoon the wind will be insane and I mean truly insane. I've heard mornings are better but I was on the property in the mornings and it still seemed very windy.

Another option is Makena. Not nearly as special as Plantation, but you can snag a deal on golfnow.com and there are still some pretty views and some fun, downhill holes.

If you're not used to playing grain in your putts then spend some time getting acclimated to the way it factors in to how you play the greens. Typically down grain is toward the water and it certainly changes the way you putt there.

If you're in Lahaina check out the Ono taco stand. Best cheap meal you'll have on the island! Take some tacos down to the water and enjoy the view and the feeling of not spending $100 on lunch!

Have a blast!

PutterKilledTheDream · January 29, 2013

[quote name='dgrelecki' timestamp='1359402569' post='6316059']
If you're just playing a round or two I would suggest kapalya plantation. It's wide open which helps the higher handicaps. Huge greens too.

Do yourself a favor and:
Make a reservation at the plantation house for dinner at sunset
Eat breakfast at the gazebo (be ready to stand in line a bit...great whale views), eat the pineapple pancakes
Make the drive to eat at Mama's Fishhouse- not many menus in the world have the name of the fish, fisherman that caught it, location and exact time.

Have fun!!!
[/quote]
[quote name='dgrelecki' timestamp='1359402569' post='6316059']
If you're just playing a round or two I would suggest kapalya plantation. It's wide open which helps the higher handicaps. Huge greens too.

Do yourself a favor and:
Make a reservation at the plantation house for dinner at sunset
Eat breakfast at the gazebo (be ready to stand in line a bit...great whale views), eat the pineapple pancakes
Make the drive to eat at Mama's Fishhouse- not many menus in the world have the name of the fish, fisherman that caught it, location and exact time.

Have fun!!!
[/quote] correction my friend....gotta get the 'banana macadamia nut pancakes' at the Gazebo, then play the Bay course at Kapalua, pretty forgiving

myspinonit · January 29, 2013

Unless things have changed dramatically, you should not have problems getting a time to play.

I haven't played the Plantation due to cost (though it's a must do for lunch or dinner, though the prices jump way up at dinner).

Like others have said, north side of the island is the most windy, and that will pose an extra challenge for you as a beginner. The wind comes up later on in the morning generally.

My wife is not far past beginner level and she loved Makena when we played there a month and a half ago, though it is supposed to be a tough track. It was the least busy of all the courses. Also great for lunch.

Don't overlook Elleair that is in Kihei and that I don't think anyone has mentioned. Not expensive for Maui and not fussy. One more eating spot there too- hey, it's part of the outing!

Sounds like most of the respondents are foodies!

Kaanapali Kai is right near you as someone else said, and it gets a lot of casual tourist play. I just asked my wife if she would recommend the Kanapaali Kai course or Elleair for a beginner- she said Elleair,

A past favourite was Pukalani, as it is friendly and unpretentious. I say past favourite as it was in really poor shape in November from lack of rain, and we therefore only played it once.

Courses will be less busy for later tee times (be sure to check sunset- it gets dark early!) so that might be a trade off with wind for your comfort as a learning golfer.

Kihei/Wailea is generally the least windy area, and the driest. Elleair does get more wind exposure than other of the southern courses as it's exposed up on the hill.

Yes you can try Easylinks or Golf Now or Standby Golf to get some deals, but there are generally only a couple of deal times per course per day. It may be too late for you now, though Standby golf is for last minute times.

[b]Phone the proshop to check on rates- and maybe do so BEFORE you try booking with a discount place . Don't count on the course website to be accurate. Maui courses often seem to think it's in their best interest to keep the prospective customer who is researching on the web in the dark of actual rates -forgetting that same customer is likely to go elsewhere if he sees a better posted rate. [/b][b]They just don't seem to get that flies in the face of common-sense business to get the customer in the door.[/b]

If you are only playing one or two rounds, you may want to just rent them rather than paying airline fees and carting them over (you would also want a GOOD travel bag to protect them). The courses will have them (varying rates, but quality is probably generally good from the ones I have seen). Or you could arrange to rent them for a longer time through such as the [i]Maui Golf Shop[/i] near the airport or [i]Hawaii Standby Golf. [/i]

I guess another bonus for you renting clubs at the course as a beginning golfer is that you may get exposed to brands, types of hybrids etc. you might want to consider in the future as your game develops.

[b]Edit: Perhaps the mods can move this thread to the Hawaii section- some good info from folks here that might help future seekers if moved? [/b]

buzlin · January 29, 2013

If you're cool with the cost - another vote for Plantation. Probably the most fun course I've played. Also played Makena North, Wailea Gold, and Maui Dunes, but none stand out like Plantation. Golf in Hawaii is always fun, so you really can't go wrong at any of the main resorts. Lots of people playing on vacation (ie, level of play isn't that high), so I wouldn't sweat it if you don't play that well, just keep up. And as others mentioned, pace of play is pretty slow, so it shouldn't be a problem as long as you're not first off.

Food wise, the Gazebo is super chill, awesome views, and solid breakfast. If you're looking for other chill/inexpensive options, I really love Aloha Mixed Plate (north side of Lahaina), all outdoor seating, drink specials, and great views. If you're headed to or from Hana, check out Paia Fish Market, relatively affordable and great atmosphere, and super chill.

Regardless, you can't go wrong!