mad about maui
>>>of course, it is also true that when all the
comforts of home are readily available, when you
can drink the water, speak the language and are
protected by the laws of the good old USa, that
island experience is so much the better. thus, with
all of the above-described attributes in its portfolio, i am mad about maui.
Who isn't? maui combines the best of all the
Hawaiian islands. it’s green and lush like Kauai; entertaining and full of fun like oahu; big, with open
spaces and sweeping vistas like the Big island; and
has tradition and spirit like molokai.
Yet it has its own distinct history and sense of
place, too: the old whaling village of lahaina—
formerly the capital of Hawaii; the majesty of mount
Haleakala, from the summit of which scores of
bicycle riders glide downhill everyday after watching the blazing sunrise; the charm and isolation of
Hana. and, like all of Hawaii, the pacific ocean is
front and center. visitors find it all before them:
surfing, swimming, whale watching, snorkeling.
maui is also home to the pga tour’s season-opening event each January, the Hyundai tournament of champions at Kapalua, and offers two
of Hawaii’s best golf destinations: Kapalua and
Wailea. each of these resorts lures visitors with
superb beaches, excellent dining, fun swimming
pools and resort activities, and two of the top-ranked golf courses in Hawaii: Kapalua plantation
and Wailea gold.
Kapalua plantation—set amidst the
23,000-acres of Kapalua resort—is a big, hilly
layout with broad ocean views from every hole. on
a windy day—which is pretty much every day in
Hawaii—golfers will understand what director of
golf operations mike Jones means when he says,
“Hawaii’s courses are defenseless without wind."
this is perhaps most evident come tournament
time, when the world's best players tee it up at
the Hyundai, featuring an elite field of previous
year's pga toUr winners. this past January,
Jonathan Byrd flew home with the $1.12 million
first prize. asked after the first round what he
thought it was going to take to win at Kapalua,
Byrd replied, "i have no idea. it depends on the
weather."
Never have I felt more
at peace in the world than
when my hair is caressed by the
trade winds found thereupon
and my body buffeted by warm
and salty waters.
above: kapalua plantation couse,
hole 9 left: winner of the 2011
hyundai tournament of champions,
jonathan byrd right: honolua bay
architects Ben crenshaw and Bill coore did
a masterful job designing the 7,411-yard/par 73
plantation course with the wind in mind. the
fairways are wider than found on many mainland
courses and the green complexes larger. as it
unfurls across former pineapple plantation fields
in the foothills of the West maui mountains with
broad views down to the coast and across the pa-
cific ocean to the island of lanai, golfers discover
that most holes need to be played strategically,
depending on conditions.
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