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 golf-and-resort lifestyle destination co-operative – Kaua’i: Discover Golf’s Ultimate Island Green – have been voted onto the “2009 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 (Robert Trent Jones Jr.)
* Kaua’i Lagoons (Kiele Course, Jack Nicklaus)
* Puakea (Robin Nelson)
Fifteen Hawai’ian courses were cited for best-of distinction; Prince Course ranked No. 2 in the state, Poipu Bay No. 4, Kiele Course No. 5, and Puakea No. 13.
Poipu Bay and Kiele Course each moved up one spot since last year while Prince Course maintained its same position. This is the second consecutive year that Puakea has been voted onto the “best-of” list in golf-rich Hawai’i.
“Having four of our island’s courses honored by Golfweek is indicative of the high-quality golf found on Kaua’i,” said Sue Kanoho, Executive Director of the Kaua’i Visitors Bureau. “Princeville’s Makai Course, our fifth golf club partner, is also a wonderful course which consistently delights players. It is currently undergoing renovation and scheduled to open later this year. We’re hopeful it will join this prestigious list next year.”
There are roughly 90 courses in Hawaii, which is widely regarded as home to many of the nation’s finest golf courses.
Golfweek raters travel 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.
For more information about golf on 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 beacon highlighting nature’s unspoiled wonder. Surrounded by the turquoise waters of the Pacific Ocean and buffeted by soothing trade winds, 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 unique attributes of the golf destination cooperative “Kaua’i: Discover Golf’s Ultimate Island Green” include a plethora of scintillating holes and the following.
1. Poipu Bay Golf Course (www.poipubaygolf.com , 800.858.6300)
* Along with Grand Hyatt Kaua’i Resort & Spa rated No. 16 in GolfWorld’s “America’s Top 50 Resort Courses, 2009”
* Four closing holes play atop a 150-foot sea cliff
* Home to the PGA Grand Slam of Golf from 1994 through 2006, it has frequently hosted players like Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Vijay Singh and other major champions
2. Princeville Golf Courses (www.princeville.com , 800.826.1105)
* Princeville Resort rated No. 22 by GolfWorld’s “Top 50 U.S. Resort Courses 2009”
* 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 course (currently closed for renovation until Fall 2009) and the 18-hole Prince – all designed by Robert Trent Jones Jr.
3. Puakea Golf Club (www.puakeagolf.com , 866.773.5554)
* Rated the 7th best course in Hawaii – Golfweek Magazine
* Golf Course Architect Robin Nelson used the natural layout of the land when he planned this layout, testing golfers of all levels and treating them to beautiful views of Mt. Ha’upu and deep lush ravines on several holes.
* Owned by AOL co-Founder Steve Case
4. Kaua’i Lagoons Golf Club (www.kauailagoonsgolf.com , 800.634.6400)
* Voted one of the “Top 50 Resort Courses” worldwide by GolfWorld magazine in its “2009 Readers’ Choice Awards”
* Currently 18 of 36 holes designed by Jack Nicklaus are in play. The back nine ocean holes of the Kiele Course are currently closed and in the process of receiving extensive upgrades, including the addition of one new ocean hole which will create a mile-long stretch of oceanfront golf.
* The Kiele Course front nine holes feature the par-3 fifth green encircled by a tropical Mango and Guava tree forest
Contact:
Dan Shepherd, Buffalo Communications
703-891-3320, dshepherd@billycaspergolf.com
www.buffalocommunications.com
