Hundreds of Panelists Rated Thousands of Courses in Order to Identify Excellence
(KAUA’I, Hawaii) – The Kaua’i Visitors Bureau today announces that four of the courses in its 117-hole golf destination co-operative – Kaua’i: Discover Golf’s Ultimate Island Green – have been voted onto the “2008 Golfweek America’s Best Courses You Can Play” by state list.
The honored courses are:
• Princeville (Prince Course, Robert Trent Jones Jr. golf course architect)
• Poipu Bay (Trent Jones Jr.)
• Kaua’i Lagoons (Kiele Course, Jack Nicklaus)
• Puakea (Robin Nelson)
Fifteen Hawaiian courses were cited for best-of distinction; Prince Course ranked No. 2 in the state, Poipu Bay No. 5, Kiele Course No. 6, and Puakea No. 7.
“Having four of our island’s courses rated in the top seven in the state by Golfweek is indicative of the high-quality golf found on Kaua’i,” said Sue Kanoho, Executive Director of the Kaua’i Visitors Bureau. “Kiahuna, our fifth golf club partner, is also a wonderful course which consistently delights players.”
There are roughly 90 courses in Hawaii, which is widely regarded as home to many of the nation’s finest golf courses.
Golfweek raters canvass the country examining courses for overall strength of routing, feature shaping, natural setting, greens, variety and memorability of holes, conditioning and maintenance, landscape management and other criteria.
Puakea, Poipu Bay, Kaua’i Lagoons, Kiahuna and Princeville combine to offer the otherworldly golf destination “Kaua’i: Discover Golf’s Ultimate Island Green.” For more information about them and the Garden Isle, visit www.discovery.com/activities/golfing/ or call 800-262-1400.
About “Kaua’i: Discover Golf’s Ultimate Island Green”
Kaua’i is colored by lush, numerous shades of green – flora and fauna blanket the mountains and serve as a painter’s palette and “carpet” of nature’s unspoiled wonder. Surrounded by the turquoise waters of the Pacific Ocean and buffeted by soothing trade winds and slack key guitar notes wafting in the breeze, Kaua’i offers more than 50 miles of white sand beaches – more beach per mile than any other island in Hawai’i. Only four percent of the island is developed for commercial and residential use.
The critical acclaim and unique attributes of the five golf-destination clubs which offer a combined 117 scintillating golf holes include:
1. Kiahuna Golf Club (www.kiahunagolf.com, 808.742.9595)
• Outstanding greens feature Seashore Paspalum, Kauai’s only course to offer them
• Designed by world-famous golf course architect Robert Trent Jones Jr., the course weaves around many ancient remnants of authentic Hawaiian culture
• Voted “Kaua’i’s Best” by the readers of The Garden Island newspaper, Kiahuna is a 6,925-yard, par 70 with a rating of 73.5 and slope of 134
2. Puakea Golf Club (www.puakeagolf.com, 866.773.5554)
• Kaua’i’s newest 18-hole course
• Owned by AOL Co-Founder Steve Case
• Adjacent to the lush site where Steven Spielberg filmed “Jurassic Park”
3. Kaua’i Lagoons Golf Club (www.kauailagoonsgolf.com, 800.634.6400)
• Home to Golf Digest’s No. 56 rated course in "America’s 100 Greatest Public Golf Courses" (Kiele Course)
• Currently 18 of 36 holes designed by Jack Nicklaus are in play. The back nine holes of the Kiele Course and front nine of the Mokihana Course are currently closed and in the process of receiving extensive upgrades, including the addition of two new ocean holes at Kiele. Completion date of the Kiele back nine is expected sometime in early 2009 and the entire project sometime in 2010)
• The Kiele Course front nine holes features the par-3 5th green encircled by a tropical Mango and Guava tree forest
4. Poipu Bay Golf Course (www.poipubaygolf.com, 800.858.6300)
• Along with Grand Hyatt Kaua’i Resort & Spa rated No. 32 in Golf Digest’s “Sublime 75: America’s Greatest Golf Resorts”
• Four closing holes play atop a 150-foot sea cliff
• Longtime home to the PGA Grand Slam of Golf, it has frequently hosted players like Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Vijay Singh and other major champions
5. Princeville Golf Courses (www.princeville.com, 800.826.1105)
• Home to Golf Digest’s No. 39 rated course in “America’s 100 Greatest Golf Courses” (Prince Course) and the No. 1 rated course in the state
• 45 holes of golf – the 27-hole Makai nines and the 18-hole Prince – all designed by Robert Trent Jones II
• Overlooks exquisite Hanalei Bay
Kaua’i’s natural wonders include the 3,567-foot deep Waimea Canyon, dubbed “The Grand Canyon of the Pacific”, and the 3,000-foot towering mountain cliffs overlooking the Napali Coast along the northwest shoreline.
A wealth of outdoor activities like kayaking, snorkeling, hiking, mountain tubing, horseback riding, ATV adventures, zipline aerial tours, helicopter and boat tours, offer memorable vacation experiences for the whole family.
Contact:
Dan Shepherd, Buffalo Communications
703-891-3320, dshepherd@billycaspergolf.com
