Royal Hawaiian Golf Club

Played this course 6 times. The greens are awful. Pretty embarrassing for a course that was once a nice course.. The previous 5x I played this course it was good. Pretty sad to see this great course go down hill.

... and that's about all I can say about this course. Second time playing here after a not so good experience the first time. I thought I'd give it another try because it is a beautiful course. For the second time, I was not able to play all 18 holes, by my own choice. Pace of play is extremely slow and when I came upon 2 groups waiting on the 12th tee, for the group of 8, (yes 8 locals), to finish, I skipped 12 and 13. There are no marshals or rangers, so the slow play goes unaddressed. The greens had been punched recently and were unplayable. Hole #1 was closed, replaced by "3b, a par 3. All that said, I do recommend playing here once just to see the beauty, but be ready for an extremely long round of golf! Also, the staff doesn't seem to care whether you're here or not. I've tried twice, taken my pictures, but I won't be back.

Worth every penny for the experience. Staff was awesome and offered great advice for first timers.

I was excited to play on the course that was cut through the mountain terrain. When I initially saw the course, I was excited to head out on the course but after the first tee, I saw the fairway which was very sparse with grass and more dirt. It did not get any better. The greens were aerated per website April 7th but the green looked like it was done yesterday.

Every hole on the front nine was pretty much the same with more dirt than grass on the fairway with aerated greens that were slow and bumpy. Almost like I was playing Plinko. It got a little better on the back nine but not by much. Needless to say that the only reason I gave this course a 2 star was because of the Mountain View and the friendly staff that I gave the extra star. Not worth the money to play this course in this current condition.

Old, dated and overgrown with no money put towards maintenance. Instead, the money you pay for green fees clearly lines the pockets of the owner. There are more weeds than grass on all fairways, and there are more divots than craters on the moon! This place apparently has never been introduced to a lawnmower. It’s shaggy everywhere - shaggier than your grandmother‘s living room rug! The condition of the tee boxes, fairways and rough are no different than a fenced-in lawn of a dope dealer on the south side with two Pitbulls and a car up on blocks. And then there are the greens. Or should I say, ‘what greens’? The chewed up road surface leading to the golf course is smoother than the greens at this club. The driving range was closed because they said the ball picker wasn’t working, but when you drive by it the range it looks like it hasn’t been open for months. The front nine is cart-path only and the back nine they allow carts on four holes. It’s target golf everywhere, so if you’re not spot on, you’re going to be losing lots of balls. There’s no water in the cart’s cooler, no water on the course and no beverage cart. Better hope it’s not a warm day when you play. So as you thrash your way through 18 holes of jungle conditions, and avoid being bitten by a snake, only because there are no snakes in Hawaii, you want to avoid this place at all costs!!! Sorry Royal Hawaiian, get your act together!

One of the most spectacular courses layouts scenic courses I played in a long time greens Green’s had been punched two weeks prior to my visit. Tee boxes were in good fairways Fairways average condition. Lots of brown was surprising because of the lush green jungle all around. all in all I will definitely play again maybe wait until course is pristine. I could also imagine it in its heyday when it first opened probably was immaculate..

Course staff was friendly and helpful. Greens had just been aerated and putting was a challenge. The jungle like setting was amazing.

Pros:

1. Royal Hawaiian is in a spectacular location, nestled between the mountains in a rain forest in the middle of Oahu. It feels as if you are in Jurassic Park as you drive from one geen to the next tee.

2. The course lay-out is fantastic, with hardly any side by side fairways.

Cons:

1. Amenities are poor: there is currently no driving range or even a net where one can warm up before playing. This is frustrating, because it is a very challenging course; if you're off-line with your tee shot, you're likely to lose a ball. We played from the blue tees and I shot 95 off a playing h/c of 11...

2. There is no restaurant available in the club house, only a snack bar where you have to order through a window and stay outside. I was told that the restaurant closed during Covid and didn't re-open. This means that after your round there is nothing to do but go home. This is a shame, as it is a large club house and the views from upstairs would have been spectacular.

3. The fairways aren't in great condition, although quite playable with preferred lies. Greens looked good although they have just been aerated on the 7th of Apr.

Great views and conditions were fine. They were going to let me off as a single but I paired up with two gentlemen. I was hesitant to play after reading past reviews on internet that conditions were unbearable but couldn’t be further from the truth. Must play if you are the island of Oahu. Hope to be back soon.

Any course Obama played is Ok by my book. Had a great time loosing a whole box of balls. Fun, and took out time at the course. Great view. and Very challenging. Would play it again for sure.

Played for the first time here while on vacation. Course conditions was average to poor. Some holes were basically dirt fairways. Greens were patchy. Outside of the views, I wouldn’t play here again. And the driving range was closed so no place to warm up

Definitely is on a unique and beautiful piece of land. The fairways had little grass, half of the greens were putting and bump and very slow. Cart paths only, would have been nice to know ahead of time, no snack bar or beverage cart. They need to work on these items as like I said , the course is on a great piece of property with scenic views of the surrounding mountains.:(

I had the opportunity to play one round on Oahu. Royal came in first when comparing so many things but with a few finishing touches this place will be amazing again. First it’s travel golf so it’s expensive but the value for the round was spot on. The scenery is amazing and if your target game is on it’s challenging but fun.

Most frustrating day of golf ever. The condition of fairways is poor. Pete Dye designed this course…..no need to say more!

Honestly one of THEE BEST courses I’ve played at! First nine are def harder and more OB left right and in the middle. Back nine opens up more and less OB, but still tough. The fairways on the front are def a little bare, but keep in mind that this part of the island gets rain NONSTOP! So given that, I understand why the fairways look that way. Greens have bent grass I think, so they are a little slow and bumpy. But honestly the VIEWS do it justice! If you’ve never been, make this the last course you play on your stay because you WILL lose balls 100%. Looking forward to improving my score next time!

This place has some cool views but It has a very outdated feel.

driving range wasn’t opened.

The snack shop was closed but they had a limited supply of snacks in the golf shop.

Golf carts were old.

Course is very patchy for a place that has good weather all year it could be in better condition.

What a fire course, people and conditions

The views are incredible. However, everyone gong else was disappointing. Fairways were hard and barely had grass. Drive out for the scenery, grab a drink and play somewhere else.