Irwin finds new home, new course at Hokuli'a

By Bill Kwon

Hale Irwin of ... Hokuli'a? After a 22-year affiliation with Maui's Kapalua Resort, the three-time U.S. Open champion and Senior PGA Tour's career money leader has gone island hopping.

No more Kapalua butterfly logos for him. Irwin is now representing Hokuli'a, an exclusive private golf course development south of Kailua, Kona on the Big Island.

"Hawai'i has been a special place to me for many years," Irwin said. "I've had great professional relationships, my family has vacationed here for many years and we see Hokuli'a as an extension of this wonderful journey."

Gary Planos, Kapalua's vice president of golf operations and a longtime friend of Irwin's, said that the parting was mutual. There were no "hard feelings."

"It's been a great 22 years. Hale just wanted to go in a different direction. Everything was mutual," Planos said.

That the different direction led Irwin from West Maui to West Hawai'i shouldn't have come as a surprise. Irwin and his wife, Sally, purchased a home site and club membership at Hokuli'a — the minimum going rate is $1 million — within the past year, before any discussions of a professional relationship began.

"The first time I saw the site several years ago, I was awestruck by the natural beauty. We loved the location and given Lyle's (Anderson, Hokuli'a's founder and developer) phenomenal track record, we saw it as a great investment. Looking to the future, when I'm off the tour, Hokuli'a is the place we want to relax and enjoy life," Irwin said. "The privacy Hokuli'a offers appealed to us and we see it as unlike any other Hawai'i community. Lyle creates a one-of-a kind lifestyle with no stone left unturned. Simply put, we knew he'd do it right."

Anderson is also noted for his private golf communities at Desert Mountain and Superstition Mountain in Arizona and Las Campanas in Santa Fe, N.M.

His company also set up the Loch Lomond Golf Club in Scotland.

Hokuli'a, which has five teeing areas with the tips stretching it to 7,347 yards, is the 11th golf course Jack Nicklaus has built for Anderson, whose company is based in Scottsdale, Ariz.

"The course is gorgeous. Jack has done a great job routing it to capture the great ocean and mountain views. The big difference between Hokuli'a and other Hawai'i courses is the incredible lack of trade winds (the average is 5 mph) and its grand scale," said Irwin, who played the course with Anderson and Nicklaus in a special outing following the MasterCard Championship in January at nearby Hualalai, another Nicklaus signature course.

"I've been friends with Hale since the 1980s. We've played many rounds of golf together, so I know him personally and I respect him a great deal," said Anderson, a visitor to the Kona Coast for more than 25 years.

"We're proud to have Hale and Sally as owners and to have Hale officially designate Hokuli'a as his home course and act as an ambassador for our club," Anderson added. "His personal involvement as a member speaks to his love of Hawai'i and to his commitment to Hokuli'a."

Irwin will wear Hokuli'a apparel and designate Hokuli'a as his club affiliation when he registers for golf tournaments and the annual PGA Tour media guide. His affiliation runs for an indefinite term.

Despite the 1,550-acre property's 1,200-foot elevation down to its three miles of coastline, thanks to Nicklaus' design skills, the course has only one uphill hole.

Because of its exclusivity as Hawai'i's first private, residential golf community, not many local golfers will have the opportunity to play it, unless you're an invited guest. It makes the meaning of Hokuli'a — translated "star of desire" and inspired by the voyaging Hokulea — ironically appropriate.

Not to say there won't be any outside play at all. Under the terms of a development agreement, the golf course will be required to host one fund-raising tournament a month starting next year — nine for outside charities and three for the Hokuli'a Foundation, which plans to benefit Kailua, Kona organizations. A junior golf tournament is also planned for next April.

A member's outing is scheduled for the Fourth of July with the grand opening set for sometime in late September or early October, according to Jason Walter, Hokuli'a's head professional, who previously had been at Desert Mountain.

Hokuli'a has been ranked among the top 50 golf courses in the world by Golf Magazine.

Anderson is so optimistic about the future of Hokuli'a that he says, "There is every reason for us to be planning a second golf course."

Construction work forces cancellation of Army event

For the first time since its 1957 inaugural as an open tournament, there will be no Army Hawai'i Invitational this year.

The primary reason is construction work at the Kalakaua Golf Course in Schofield Barracks, one of two sites for the tournament, according to Mike Iyoki, director of golf for the U.S. Army Golf Courses.

Two holes — the 14th and 15th — are being redone because a new multi-purpose facility is being built by the old par-5 14th green. The 14th, still a dog-leg right, will now be a 390-yard par-4. The 15th, using the original green, will be a 175-yard par-3.

A popular tournament, the Army Hawai'i Invitational has drawn more than 400 entries in recent years, making it difficult for the event to be played only at Leilehua, the other golf course utilized in the 54-hole event.

"We would have had to cut down the entries drastically if we had the tournament," Iyoki said. "We didn't want to do that. We hope to do it bigger and better next year."

Bill Kwon can be reached at bkwon@aloha.net.