Royal Hawaiian Golf Club

I was thoroughly amazed that they could carve a golf course out of the canyons below the Pali. It reminded me of jungle hikes. This was one of the most scenic courses I've ever played. Spectacular views on almost every hole. The course itself is somewhat short but very challenging. The facility is very nice and well maintained. Can't wait to go back.

With low expectations playing a Pete Dye course, I was blown away. Running inland through a rain forest, the course was fun, challenging and fair. Such words have never been said by me about any Pete Dye course ever. Even more thrilled to only pay $35 for a same day replay. Scored well despite the wind and blown away by the views of the jungle. Don't miss this.

Plan for adequate warm up time before the round. Accuracy is very important on the first few holes.

Believe everything you read about bringing extra golf balls. That is just a reality on this challenging course with gorgeous views of mountain and valleys. There is a reason they call the front nine, Jurassic Park. You expect to see dinosaurs popping out at any moment. We only saw a family of nosey wild pigs. Be prepared for blind and down hill shots. We started on the back nine, which got us comfortable with hitting fairway woods or hybrids off the tees -- you'll need to on the front nine. The greens were faster on the back, which posed a problem when we got to the slower front nine greens.Overall a wonderful golfing experience.

My buddies had warned me that I wouldn't enjoy this round and they couldn't be more correct. The level of inconsistency in the quality of the course combined with the insanely unfair layout makes for a not-fun round.

There were greens and fairways that were gorgeous...and then there were fairways and greens that were worse than the worst municipal course.

The course isn't made for golf. There were par 5's that ran out of fairway at the 240 yd mark unless you go way right which was improbable. There were par 4's that if you hit a driver you'd be too far and if you hit an iron you'd have to hit a 5i to an elevated green that wasn't receptive at all. I'll never play again.

I really, REALLY enjoyed the course today. I can say it was imensly challanging. I really played layup golf and had a complete blast. I just can't imagine trying to crush some of these holes, the difficult terrain shows everyone who tries! Its a ball graveyard out there!

Greens were in good shape but fairways were in bad shape. lack of water

The back nine at Royal Hawaiian is pretty open and very playable; the front is called Jurassic Park and I was cautioned to bring a (few) backup sleeve(s) of ball(s). I got started on ten and my first nine (10-18) played as advertised. There was enough challenge to keep me interested, but nothing that would likely cause frustration as long as you are hitting your clubs decently (which, fortunately, I was).

There is some elevation change and, due to the relatively dry landing surfaces, plenty of roll to be found as a result (witness my 196 7 iron off the first tee). I played the black tees (not the tips here) which were only about 6000 yards; however, as the starter told me, it’s not the length that can get you here. I got through 8 holes 2 over and was feeling pretty confident (too confident, in fact, after hitting a practically perfect 3W 221 yards uphill off the tee, I proceeded to pull the ensuing wedge out of bounds and took a double going into the turn).

As we entered “Jurassic Park” I was reminded by a club staff person not to get too frustrated if I lost too many balls and I prepped myself for a difficult final nine. Ultimately; however, I didn’t lose any balls other than a couple of complete miss hits on my part (read: me trying to tin cup my way over a 220 yard carry that I had no business shooting for on this particular day). The fact of the matter is, the back nine (not unlike the front) is just not very long (3043 from the blacks) and almost every hole is approachable with mid irons off the tee. So, as long as you aren’t digging into your bag for your driver on every hole, you really don’t have to be in that much trouble (again, the only hole I really got in trouble on was when I got out my big(ish) stick and tried to be a hero). That was also the only double I had on the back and I was perfectly satisfied to card a 41.

What the front nine did allow me to do, and I really enjoyed, was work on shaping some shots with a real reward for doing so. The par 5 fourth hole, for example is reachable with a well-placed drive (the fairway is open enough to use a big club here without any real danger, I used a 3w) and a ~200 yard club with a draw (you have to bend it around a tree). I didn’t quite have enough draw to get on the green, but I was able to get around the tree and get close enough to chip on and leave myself a very makeable birdie putt. This was a perfect warmup for anther draw on the fifth (8i from 178… downhill) which led to a GIR on a relatively tricky green to reach without a solid drive (which I didn’t muster on that hole).

Long story made short (literally and figuratively) I found the front nine very playable, provided you have a little discipline off the tee. Additionally it turned out to be a decent test of golf, both from a shot making and course management standpoint.

Beyond the golf, this track (especially the front) is absolutely beautiful. Nestled in a valley, towering (yet very green) cliff walls surround you and jungle vegetation is lush and plentiful. They have recently cleared out a lot of growth, so there are currently some barren spots on some of the holes, but based on the plant life around these areas, I expect the “baldness” to be short lived. Royal Hawaiian is certainly scenic enough that even if you did have a frustrating day with your clubs, you can always look up and just enjoy your surroundings.

The staff was outstanding. Their enthusiasm for the course was noticeable from the minute we stepped out of the car. They were eager to help in any way and seemed truly bent on ensuring we had a great day.

As I mentioned above the course was a bit dry (but that certainly benefitted me from a golf standpoint). The greens were also a bit slow (they recently put in new grass that isn’t mature yet); however, they let me know about that right away when we arrived and insisted that we hit the practice green before playing to get the feel of them. This helped a lot, and, firing a slow greens (when you know they are slow) is never bad for scoring anyway. They were, despite being a little slow, in excellent shape.

I haven’t played any other courses on the island, so I can’t compare Royal Hawaiian anything here; however, I can say I’d play it again. In fact it is entirely possible I’ll sneak in another round before this visit to the islands is over.

Very Fun course.

Very good facility and good staffs.

We had just flown into Honolulu and wanted to get an afternoon round in, and this course was relatively close to the airport. Had the greens not been punched the week before, it may have been my favorite course on the trip. Such a unique and absolutely amazing layout. Words and pictures cannot do this place justice. You have to see it for yourself to understand. It is almost like Jurassic Park on a golf course. Highly recommend giving it a try!

I had not played this course since it was Luana Hills Country Club years ago. The updates made have been great in terms of removing deadfall and other erroneous coverage. Course was in great shape (for aerification conditions) and is absolutely beautiful. Enjoy the scenery and layout of this course more than Ko'olau (which also has a tendency to be very wet). Great course.

Crazy cool layout. Pete dye used the natural landscape of the Hawaiian rainforest to create a golf course with equally memorable holes and views. You will not he disappointed with your decision to play this course. Reminds me of a real life tiger woods video game course. Bring extra balls and try to conquer Jurassic park.

The course is in decent shape. But the "venue" overall needs a million of 10 spent on it, to bring it up to its potential. But it doesn't matter. It is such a unique experience, particularly compared with the contrived design approach of so many courses, this is a must adventure for any golfer visiting Oahu. You may leave angry, at all the balls you loose. But I can't imagine anyone being disappointed. I wish the new owners every success, and give them a very big "hat tip" for taking the project on. I look forward to visiting again.

Have played it four times during a three week work trip. After you pay the $115 visitor rate, they will give you a card for two weeks to pay the resident rate ($40-$45), all include cart. Probably don't want to walk this place. All of these prices are twilight, which begins at noon. Staff was excellent: Trent, Jackie, Jerry, all of them. Fairways were'nt the best, First round it was muddy and cart path only on 12 holes. 10 days later you could drive on them all, but lift clean and place was still probably the best play. Greens looked spotty in places, but were firm, held iron shots, and rolled true. The best part is it's carved through a rain forest, and is unlike anyplace I have ever played. 4 hours was my longest round, when I stopped to take photos and listen to all of the birds. Played in two and a half hours with my non-playing girlfriend(while she took many pics and videos). I've played Pebble and the Old Course. This ranks up there with them, due to it's uniqueness. It's a Dye design, so has some visual intimidation; but, it's not overly long , at least from the blue and black tees: I played well and enjoyed every minute.

Played this course for the first time and it's a tough course to love and hate. What you will love about the course is the scenery. It absolutely lives up to the billing of playing in Jurassic park. You can't help but wonder if that rustling amongst the trees is a dinosaur ready to pounce.

The course design itself is what you would expect from a Pete Dye design. You really have to think through your tee shot and pick your spots as the course doesn't offer a lot of room to go astray. There are a lot of great holes on this course and each one is unique to keep you engaged throughout the round.

However, and this is a big however, the course is in terrible shape and I can understand why. It's basically situated in the middle of a rain forest. The fairways are pretty much bare and with the recent rains in Honolulu they have become quite muddy. You will always be hitting off mud and moving your ball a few yards on the fairway looking for a firm enough place to hit your approach. The greens are in better shape than the fairways but they definitely need attention. The bunkers are down to the last gains of sand and it looks like they have been trying to fill them with sand from the beach cause you will find shells in them. Drier weather may help but this course is not suffering because of weather. This is likely a costly course to maintain and I suspect the owners have had to make some tough decisions.

I would not play this course again unless the conditions get better BUT you should play it once if you haven't because you will really appreciate the course design and the surroundings. Don't pay more than $70 for your round ( search online and you will find some good rates for this course). Low cappers will enjoy the challenge and high cappers will hate losing golf balls (but you will find plenty of suitable replacements).

This course recently changed hands and they have started to rip out massive amounts of trees and shrubbery. They should be spending money installing better drainage and sanding of fairways. The course so poorly drained the grass/turf is dying off in favour of broadleaf weed grasses. I paid US$160.00 as a non resident and local residents pay $US55.00. This is price gouging so avoid the course altogether!!!

this is a great course in the making. I played this course over 10 years ago and knew this was a beautiful course but they changed it up and it was definitely for the better. love the course layout, somewhat short course but a premium is put on accurate drives and irons especially since many of the greens are elevated. i would definitely recommend good rubber spikes for this course due to the many hills. the scenery is great and to me worth the price even without the golf, staff is beyond friendly and reminds of how the old style hawaiian aloha used to be even though i was older than many of the staff, they explained the course layout , gave helpful advice on how to play certain holes, it almost made me feel like a tourist with all the attention our group and other people were getting, beyond awesome. the down points are minimal, 1 or 2 tee boxes were in somewhat average shape, one bunker didnt have enough sand in it(i actually hit gravel after taking a shot not knowing it was below the sand, club slightly scratched but no real damage), and unfortunately no real dining facilities yet(being constructed i think). overall this course is well worth the money being a resident(not sure how much tourist rate is) and being someone who golfs 2-3 times a week for the past 3 months i can definitely say this is the best course i have played this year, 10x better than honolulu country club which is a private course.

This course is a "Must Play" when coming to Oahu.

The views and lay out of the course make it challenging and distracting at the same time. Take a few extra balls just in case. May the "Force be with You!"