Updated at 8:04 a.m., Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Golf: Redesign, new turf coming to Mauna Kea course
Advertiser Staff
The award-winning Mauna Kea Golf Course on the Big Island is about to get even better. Renowned course designer Rees Jones, son of original course architect Trent Jones Sr., is leading the redesign with the course to be reopened in the fall of 2008."Mauna Kea is not only one of the premier golf courses in existence, but one that cannot be replicated. It differentiates itself from other courses because of its history, its pedigree and its setting," Rees Jones said in a released statement yesterday. "Once our work is complete, the world of golf will be reintroduced to this historic golf venue and its elite playing standards."
According to the news release, Mauna Kea's greens, tees, fairways and rough will all be replaced with new hybrids of turf that can be groomed for the skill levels of both resort and professional golfers. The bunkers will be restored to their original look with all the sand replaced. Plans include rebuilding greens to USGA standards and specifications, without changing their original strategy.
The clubhouse and restaurant are also being renovated.
The 18-hole, par-72, 7,165-yard Mauna Kea Golf Course opened in December 1964. Recognized by golfers worldwide for its signature oceanfront No. 3 hole, the course offers dramatic elevation changes, large undulating greens, 120 bunkers and some of the most spectacular panoramic ocean and mountain views found in the Islands.
