Waikoloa Beach Resort – Beach Nine, Lakes Nine, and Kings’ Nine

Kings’ Nine

The Kings’ Nine provides a completely different playing experience. A Scottish links-style layout, the Kings’ Nine features wide fairways and wider views of Mauna Kea in the background. Native grasses and pot bunkers add a degree of drama and strategy to shot-making. The signature hole on this loop is #5, a risk/reward par-four of only 277 yards. Better players might consider going for the green, but trouble lurks left and short in the form of a fairway-long sand bunker and massive lava boulders. A truly memorable hole on a truly memorable course.

Lakes Nine

The Lakes Nine winds its way through the heart of the resort, taking its name from the bodies of water that come into play on five of the nine holes. This classic resort-style layout, part of the original Beach Course built back in 1980, will not beat you up with length, but does require strategic shots to avoid lava and water trouble. The lava beds in this area of the resort created some natural elevation changes that were neatly incorporated into the design. Hole #8 is a fun and scenic par-three hole with a water carry to reach the receptive green and a towering wall of lava as a backdrop.

Beach Nine

The Beach Nine is a must-play, featuring generous landing areas from the tee boxes and large greens surrounded by low-lipped bunkers to reward the social golfer. Skilled and avid players can be aggressive and be rewarded with multiple birdie opportunities. Hole #6 is the highlight of this loop, a par-five that plays on an emerald ribbon of fairway between black lava fields down to the ocean, then takes a hard dogleg-left to a putting surfaced ringed by swaying palm trees and backed by Pacific waves, creating one of the most beautiful and memorable holes in Hawaii.