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Rating Index Rating
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4.3
452 Reviews (452)
5 Stars
175
4 Stars
202
3 Stars
53
2 Stars
12
1 Stars
10
Conditions
4.2
Value
4.3
Layout
4.6
Friendliness
4.7
Pace
4.5
Amenities
4.1
92.9%
Recommend this course
418 out of 452 reviews
Read Reviews
Average Rating
Avg Rating
4.1
16 Reviews (16)
5 Stars
7
4 Stars
6
3 Stars
2
2 Stars
0
1 Stars
1
Conditions
4.1
Value
4.3
Layout
4.3
Pace
4.3
Amenities
4.2
StaffFriendliness
4.7
93.8%
Recommend this course
15 out of 16 reviews
Read Reviews
Average Rating
Avg Rating
4.4
41 Reviews (41)
5 Stars
23
4 Stars
14
3 Stars
2
2 Stars
0
1 Stars
2
Conditions
4.3
Value
4.4
Layout
4.6
Pace
4.4
Amenities
4.2
StaffFriendliness
4.7
95.1%
Recommend this course
39 out of 41 reviews
Read Reviews
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AI summaries based on real golfer reviews
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Course Highlights
Puakea's varied, challenging layout delivers beautiful mountain views and consistently solid conditions at an outstanding value compared to other Kauai courses. Exceptionally friendly staff and a smooth pace of play make every round an enjoyable island experience.

About

Holes 18
Type Public
Par 72
Length 6954 yards
Slope 130
Rating 73.1

Ranked the 13th Best Golf Course You Can Play in Hawaii by Golfweek Magazine in 2009, Puakea is a one of Hawaii's best kept golf secrets. Designed by Robin Nelson, Puakea is a fun golf experience for the recreational golfer while still a challenge for the better player when played from the back tees. Located in Lihue across from the Kukui Grove Shopping Center, Puakea is easy to get to no matter where you are staying on Kauai. With its fully stocked pro shop, large grass driving range and practice bunkers and practice green Puakea is a great place to spend the day working on your game. Be sure to visit the Grille for a burger, salad, sandwich or cold beer.

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Puakea Golf Course
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Course Details

Year Built 1997
Fairways Bermuda Grass
Greens Bermuda Grass
Golf Season Year round
Architect Robin Nelson (2003) Robin Nelson (1997) Mark Miller (1997)

Rentals/Services

Carts Yes - included in green fees
GPS No
Caddies No
Clubs Yes

Practice/Instruction

Driving Range Yes
Bunker Yes
Teaching Pro Yes
Pitching/Chipping Area Yes
Putting Green Yes

Policies

Credit Cards Accepted VISA, MasterCard, Amex Welcomed
Metal Spikes Allowed No
Dress code Appropriate golf attire.

Food & Beverage

Bar, Grill, Restaurant

Available Facilities

Clubhouse

Accolades

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Reviews

4.3
452 Reviews (452)

What Golfers Are Saying

The 19th Hole is Great For:
Drinks 23
Brunch 10
19th Hole Specials 7
Course Challenges Include:
Bunkers 50
Elevation Changes 40
Water Hazards 37
This course/club is great for:
Wildlife/ Scenic Views 38
Locals 29
Seniors 29
This Course's Location is:
Convenient to the City 53
Near the Airport 51
Near Local Attractions 13

Numbers based on reviews tagged with attribute.

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Overall Rating
Recommended
Handicap
Age
Type of Golfer
Gender
Played On
Reviews 11
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Excellent

This is the best course on Kauai for the money! The green speed is perfect and the greens are in great condition. The staff is extremely professional. Many thanks to the starter Chris.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Default User Avatar
Commented on 03/29/2019

WOW, Steven, thanks for the great review. Glad you enjoyed Puakea!

Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Beginner
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Good times

Very professional staff- nice course - good paradise value!

Conditions Good
Value Good
Layout Good
Pace Excellent
Amenities Excellent
Default User Avatar
Commented on 12/10/2018

Happy to hear you enjoyed the course and staff! Hope to see you again soon!

Default User Avatar
Commented on 12/02/2018

Thanks for playing Puakea and we're happy you enjoyed the course. Hope to see you back!

Played On
Reviews 21
Handicap 10-14
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

Wow

Great day. Gem on Kauai, grea6 layout, very good conditions. Great vistas of mountains. Only negative hole 9 you play along side road, traffic noise.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Default User Avatar
Commented on 12/10/2018

Mahalo for playing Puakea and for the great review and feedback! Hope to see you again soon!

Default User Avatar
Commented on 12/02/2018

Aloha! Thank you for joining us at Puakea. Glad you like the layout, conditions and views. Sorry about the issue on the 9th holes. We do hope to see you return for another round in the future.

Played On
Reviews 3
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

A gem of a course right in Lihue!

Great course, fast , true greens. Bunkers were a little washed out from the rains a few days ago.

Pace of play was excellent! Many beautiful holes and an interesting layout.

Conditions Good
Value Average
Layout Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Excellent
Amenities Poor
Default User Avatar
Commented on 12/10/2018

Thanks for rating us a GEM! Mahalo for playing Puakea, hope to see you again soon!

Played On
Reviews 93
Handicap 10-14
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Average
Default User Avatar
Commented on 12/10/2018

Mahalo M. Patrick for the great review. Hope to see you again soon!

Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Great terrain and layout

This is a great layout and variety of holes. Good conditions and price.

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Average
Default User Avatar
Commented on 12/10/2018

Mahalo for the great review, hope to see you again soon!

Played On
Reviews 15
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Returned after several years

This is a great course for the money. The layout is good, course conditions were great. Pace of play was very slow. We had a foursome in front of us that had to be 2 holes behind. It finally became so frustrating that we skipped a hole so that we could finish in a reasonable time. No marshalls. It would have been a 5 1/2 +++ round if we wouldn't have skipped a hole. But it was a holiday weekend and rookies were out.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Good
Pace Average
Played On
Reviews 5
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Conditions Excellent
Value Good
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Good
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 4
Skill Advanced
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing

Spectacular value golf

Spectacular scenery next to mountains in Kauai beautiful course pace of play was great great value at $70

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Default User Avatar
Commented on 12/10/2018

Mahalo Cliff for the great review, hope to see you again soon!

Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Advanced
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Good conditions good vistas

Plenty of difficulties to consider. Enjoyed the round very much.

Conditions Good
Value Good
Layout Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Default User Avatar
Commented on 12/10/2018

Glad you enjoyed the layout. Hope to see you again soon!

Played On
Reviews 4
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Conditions Good
Value Good
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 8
Handicap 20-24
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Perfect weather
Used cart

Must play on Kauai !!

Do not mistake the fact that this is not a "resort" course. Plays in the natural surroundings with plenty of variety on each hole. Greens are in excellent shape.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Excellent
Amenities Average
Difficulty Moderate
Played On
Reviews 7
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Great Golf especially for the money in Hawaii

The course was in great condition with beautiful views and interesting holes. Pace of play was good. Practice range was okay not great. Got a good tuna sandwich for a reasonable price with chips included. One negative was the lack of covers for clubs on the carts and with a bit of rain during the round that was somewhat concerning. But overall it was a good track.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Good
Pace Excellent
Amenities Average
Played On
Reviews 17
Handicap 5-9
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
First Time Playing

Maybe the best deal in Kauai?

Played this course twice. After six nice but standard hole, we get to a more hilly part, and we’re in for a great ride. The back nine is very solid, specially the 11 to 18 hole where you have to think your way on a very good design . Golf is not cheap in Kauai but at 85$ this is a very good deal. Also the café is a popular spot and the food is good.

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 1
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Puakea

Very nice course & fun to play. Unfortunately greens had just been air rated and sanded but was not advised till I arrived at course

Conditions Average
Value Good
Layout Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Played On
Reviews 6
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played
Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Average
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Average
Amenities Fair
Played On
Reviews 19
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
First Time Playing

Good, bad and the ugly.

Overall pretty good course. It is challenging and requires some target golf and course management. I am a higher handicapper, 1st time playing this course and 1st time playing this year and I still managed to par a few holes.

I decided to stick with a 3 wood instead of driver to minimize hazard issues from wayward drives. Greens roll fairly true and are pretty good shape.

Great driving range, they have a restaurant but never tried the food yet. bathrooms available but no sink in the bathrooms and more upkeep needed as they were smelly. Golf carts were nice, nice paths to drive on, good signage, friendly staff.. We will purchase a multiplay card to save a few dollars on our rounds.

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Average
Played On
Reviews 6
Handicap 15-19
Skill Intermediate
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
First Time Playing
Perfect weather
Used cart
Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Good
Amenities Excellent
Difficulty Somewhat Challenging
Played On
Reviews 9
Handicap 5-9
Skill Advanced
Plays A few times a week
I Recommend This Course
4.0
Verified Purchaser
Previously Played

Best 18 hope value on Kauai

This was the 12 th time to play this course. Over the years they keep improving it. Good practice facility as well. Only negative is you have no ocean view holes but you do have some very scenic holes. Fun to play for all handicaps!!

Conditions Excellent
Value Excellent
Layout Good
Friendliness Good
Pace Excellent
Amenities Average
Played On
Reviews 2
Handicap 25+
Skill Intermediate
Plays Once a week
I Recommend This Course
5.0
Verified Purchaser
Windy weather
Used cart

The Good & the Bad

Weather and course were great, pace of play was excellent (played 18 in 4 hours, 10 minutes). Too bad my game has deteriorated, but then, we all loved the opportunity to be out here.

Conditions Good
Value Excellent
Layout Excellent
Friendliness Excellent
Pace Excellent
Amenities Good
Difficulty Moderate
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Golf Packages
Kapalua Resort Bay Course

Maui Golf Around Package

REQUEST QUOTE BELOW*
MAUI | Enjoy lodging accommodations at Napili Kai Beach Resort and golf at Kapalua Resort Plantation Course, the Royal Ka'anapali Course, Ka'anapali Kai Course, or King Kamehameha Golf Club.

Maui Golf Around Package

REQUEST QUOTE BELOW*
MAUI | Enjoy lodging accommodations at Napili Kai Beach Resort and golf at Kapalua Resort Plantation Course, the Royal Ka'anapali Course, Ka'anapali Kai Course, or King Kamehameha Golf Club.

Best of Maui Golf Package

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MAUI | Enjoy lodging accommodations at The Ritz-Carlton, Kapalua and golf at the newly refined Kapalua Resort Plantation Course, the Royal Ka'anapali Course, the Ka'anapali Kai Course, or the King Kamehameha Golf Club.
Kapalua Resort Plantation Course - Hole 18

Best of Maui Golf Package

REQUEST QUOTE BELOW*
MAUI | Enjoy lodging accommodations at The Ritz-Carlton, Kapalua and golf at the newly refined Kapalua Resort Plantation Course, the Royal Ka'anapali Course, the Ka'anapali Kai Course, or the King Kamehameha Golf Club.
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