Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/80982
ALL IMAGES COURTESY KA'ANAPALI GOLF RESORT BY JEFF SUTHERLAND Turn-Key Golf Vacations At: Ka'anapali And when you talk about Maui, it's hard not to think of the Ka'anapali Golf Resort. In a nutshell, Ka'anapali is an outstanding turn-key solution for family, couple and golfer travel. Located within the resort are 11 different hotel accommodations, 3 beachside spas, 40 restaurants and beach-side shopping. This locale actually has a pedigree for tourism that goes back centuries... It used to the be a vacation spot for Hawaiian royalty. While the royalty may have confined their leisure activities to surfing and lawn bowling, visitors today can add golf as an option. The two courses here have a pedigree that dates back to 1962 when the original Royal Course, a Robert Trent Jones Sr. design, opened, testing the skills of professional and amateur golfers since. A par-71, 6,700-yard layout, the Royal Course combines wide fairways and undulating greens, making it distinctive, demanding and exciting, hole to hole. It has more than 45 years of tournament history including the Wendy's Champions Skins Game 2008- 2011 and the LPGA's Kemper Open. During these events, the Royal Course has hosted many of golf's legends. With Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player, Tom Watson, Billy Casper, Amy Alcott and Jan Stephenson all teeing it up, it's easy to get a sense of history here. 2012 marks the golden anniversary and over 50 years, there have been many changes highlighted some six years ago when some $13 million was spent on renos for both the eighteens as well as the Clubhouse. One of the course changes was building four sets of tee boxes for all levels of play (ranging from 6700 yards to 4500 yards) and overall many holes were completely rebuilt. The quality of the renovations was proven when Ka'anapali subsequently played host to big events including Big Break Ka'anapali in 2008 and Wendy's Senior Skins Game in 2011. Another nice touch was to share the resort's culture with golfers by giving traditional Hawaiian names to each hole. These days it is part of the Ka'anapali experience to read the bronze plaque on every tee box explaining the name's relevance. Improvements to manicure and design notwithstanding, one of the major draws has always been looking up from a putt to see humpback whales breaching on the horizon of the blue Pacific. To go along with all of these improvements and splashing distractions, there are some innovative packages and programs at Ka'anapali. 2012 HAWAII UPDATE Who says you have to play all 18 holes over the course of several hours? You don't, thanks to an innovative program – "Golf My Way" – introduced by Ka'anapali Golf Resort. The package allows golfers to pay for all 18-holes up front and have the option to leisurely fit-in their round over a maximum of seven days. "We recognized a need to create unique opportunities for golfers to experience golf at our resort in doses that suit their style and their time available," says GM Ed Kageyama. "At Ka'anapali, we are committed to creating lasting memories and 'Golf My Way' helps players find short time periods during the vacation to work-in a round of golf." Price for this on the Royal Ka'anapali Course are $189 (Ka'anapali Resort Guests) and $249 (non-resort Guests) while rates on the Ka'anapali Kai Course are $205 and $165 respectively. There are also a number of other multi-round packages available. Rates starting at $329 for The "Mixed Plate" package gets you one round on each course. Other multi round packages like the "Whale of a Deal" (5 rounds) are offered seasonally. All packages come with 'coupons' for their 2nd, 3rd, etc rounds and those are per person but good for up to one year from date of purchase... Great for guests who visit a few times a year! For more information about these packages or for tee times in general, call the Ka'anapali Golf & Resort Shop at (808) 661-3691 or visit www.kaanapaligolfresort.com. New For 2012: Roy's Ka'anapali at The Clubhouse The most recent addition to the Ka'anapali crown occured in February when award-winning Roy Yamaguchi opened his restaurant in the Ka'anapali Clubhouse. The menu features many of Roy Yamaguchi's famed dishes, including Hawaiian-style misoyaki butterfish and melting hot-chocolate souffle, an annual winner in their Best of Maui contest. "We couldn't be more excited about our new location" says Yamaguchi, a James Beard Award-winning chef with 31 restaurants worldwide. We think the clubhouse at the Ka'anapali Golf Courses is a perfect fit for us, and we look forward to continuing to serve the West Maui community and its visitors for years to come." "We are very excited - as Roy and his team bring a great reputation and following," says Ed Kageyama, general manager of Ka'anapali Golf Courses. 25