Makalei Golf Club

I had read the online reviews as well as other reviews, and thought the course was going to be tougher than it actually was.
I booked this through golf now, and received a 67% discount over the advertised usual price, and was a little apprehensive that the course superintendent would somehow find a loophole in the deal. Much to my surprise, it worked out perfectly, and the price was exactly as negotiated through golf now.
I also rented golf clubs, and they were very good quality taylor-made and modern/current clubs with no signs of wear or tear. The price for the club rentals were not part of the overall discount that we received through golf now. Thus we actually paid $50 per set of clubs for rentals. That was steep, but in view of the entire experience, it was fine.
The wildlife was as advertised. Peacocks, wild turkeys. Absolutely stunning views of the beach and airport and airplanes taking off and landing 3,000 feet below certainly added to the experience.

The layout of the course is great, with beautiful views and challenging golf -- many risk-reward shots. I was in three bunkers, and experienced very shallow sand (about 1/2 inch) on top of lava bedrock, resulting in a skulled shot over the green. Aside from this, the course is wonderful. The greens were true and in great shape. We saw many peacocks, roosters and turkeys throughout. Distances to tees requires a cart -- not walkable.

Loved golfing here. They changed the routing of holes to make a better experience. The difficult uphill number one is now number 12. A golfer can score here. Plays shorter than 6161 yards.

Dramatic elevation changes and wind create a challenging track that's fun to play. Middle handicappers can still score well as long as the ball stays away from the edges. Greens are well maintained and and bunkers come into play often.
Great value, terrific scenery and peacocks around every corner.
Highly recommended

the course was in good shape but if you do not hit it straight you can get in the thick stuff just outside the rough. forget about finding the ball, bring enough balls to make it through the round. Beautiful scenery and good greens!!

This course is ver hilly. Even with a cart there was plenty of walking. They reconfigured this course since playing it last year. The 1st hole must be about a mile from the clubhouse. Fun and challenging.

It's a rainforest, it was raining off and on all afternoon. Still love the course, it's very quiet and peaceful out there.
Lots of different elevations. (As the Scottish and the Welsh would say "It's a bit of an up and down" . The course has been re-arranged so the #8 hole is now #1, it's a bit confusing and a bit longer to get to #1 and a long drive to the clubhouse when you finish on #18.

I paid $25 so it's difficult to expect too much, especially when considering Hawaii Golf prices.

Pros:
Cheap
Extremely quick round

Cons:
Poor maintenance- tee boxes looked like rough in some areas. They weren't flat lies either. Nothing like impacting a driver slightly off the toe because of a sloped tee box.
Lies- The course is high in the mountains so understandably there are tons of altitude changes; however, they didn't put much effort into ensuring flat areas to strike the ball. I remember hitting about 8 fairways and none of my lies were all that rewarding. I remember hitting one iron the entire round from a lie that seemed completely level. It's a part of golf to play from different lies, but I feel that if you hit the ball in the fairway you should have a reward of a decent lie.
Fairway- the fairways were not well taken care of, and as a result, it felt like most of the course was playing from the rough. The fairways were short, but so bumpy and uneven.
Bunkers were like hitting out a gravel pit.

I would not go back to this course, even with such a great discount. I would much rather pay $80-100 for a very nice course than save $50 to play here again.

I didn't actually score all that well considering every approach shot was from a slight to heavy uneven lie.

The peacocks scared my wife slightly, they were pretty used to humans and in some cases even ran towards us assuming we would feed them.

Got a good rate on golfnow but still not much of a deal. The course has lots of elevation change since it's up the hill from Kona and there's lots of birds to see BUT the course is not in good shape. They said they aerated the greens which is good to know but they hadn't cut the greens in days so that it was ridiculous trying to putt on them. You needed to hit the ball really hard at the hole. One on the stimpmeter. Courses still cut the grass even after aerating. First bunker I was in my club bounced to the ball since the sand was so hard. Layout was good but this course needs a lot of maintenance.

Very well maintained, interesting layout, hilly but very playable for all. High in the hills so weather always and views a great plus. Greens fees also best on the island and deals make it even better
Played many times and will continue to do so, only bummer this trip was greens just aerated so putting very erratic but expected...still a great round. Will continue to lay there every trip

The course needs some maintenance. Most of the tee boxes had not been repaired in some time. It didn't affect play, only the aesthetics. If you are expecting great views, this is not the place to go. You occasionally catch a glimpse of the coast. The uphill holes are as tough as the downhill holes are easy. The greens and fairways had a lot of weeds growing through them, but only slightly affected play. The bunkers were hard packed. If they aren't going to maintain them, they might as well turn them into grass bunkers.
If you are a resident, the resident rate of $33 (I think) is reasonable, but the visitor rate of $100 is too high when you consider you can play the course at the Hapuna resort for the same price and it is more convenient and in better condition. It can be cooler up at Makalei, so it is much more pleasant in the afternoon than on the coast.
They start you out on the 8th hole. I think they do this because of its proximity to the practice range. It is a little hard to find your way around if you are not familiar with the course, and starting on the eighth hole makes it easier. The range balls should be replaced. You probably would do as well just making practice swings of your different clubs. Hitting the range "balls" won't tell you much about your warm up.
The staff was friendly and helpful. You might want to play it once if you have some spare time or you can only play in the afternoon and you want a cooler climate. I won't go back.
Yes, as everyone else has noted, there are peacocks on almost every hole, but I don't play golf for the wildlife. DON'T try to walk this course. There are long distances between holes and there are very steep inclines.

We were incredibly excited to play this course as we have played numerous other courses on our stay and loved them all. When we arrived we discovered the course had been aerated just the week before. We were not notified at booking that this was the case. Upon the start it was evident the course was not in great shape with the rough being 3-5" deep. They started us on the 8th tee with little instruction on how I find it. When we finished 8-18 we followed the signs back to supposed 1 hole and was told we did not go the right way. We said we followed the signs and were told we made the mistake because we followe the old signs (only signs posted). We then went all the way back and followed the #12 sign to the first hole. The greens were atrocious as they had been aerated and cross hatched. Also ungroomed and played slow as molasses. It was impossible to judge the putt. Outside of the cart lady who was extremely nice the course attendees were dismissive and unhelpful. The starter even laughed when we commented on the aerated greens. We will never play here again or recommend it to anyone.

This course is in serious trouble. Poor fairways, overgrown, and recent aeration makes this a poor choice on the Big Island.

Upon arrival for our 2:36 tee time, we were told that we had to be back at the club house by 6pm. This course takes 5-7minutes of hilly climbing trails to get to the first hole, which by the way is actually the 8th hole. Even as a two-some, we were only able to get 14 holes in due to the hilliness and difficulty of the course....DO NOT BOOK THIS COURSE after 1pm.

BE WARNED...there is NOW WATER ON THE COURSE that is potable. It's not until the 12th tee that you circle back to the club house where you will pay for water as there are no drinking fountains. Oh...and the staff could care less.

Great mountain side course. Great views of the Kona coast from several holes. If you haven't been close to peacocks, this is the place. Greens very good. Tees and fairways OK. 15th hole, a downhill par 3 with water on left side has to be the signature hole. Would definitely play again

I've played here for 13 years and have never been bored. It is a high risk--high reward with elevation changes, bent grass greens and great vistas from over 2000ft. It's a "must play" golf course and one you will want to come back to ASAP.

As a novice golfer this course was very challenging. Its natural beauty, layout and views were breathtaking at times. But the course appears to be designed for resort quality that has fallen into disrepair. The greens were in pretty good shape but the fairways were terrible. It was difficult to distinguish when you were on the fairway versus the rough unless you considered the barren dirt the fairway. There were no range balls available because the pick up machine for range balls was out of service. We tee'd off early and mostly had the course to ourselves, guess that attests to the conditions. Upon return to the club house ther was no one there to receive us and attend to cart and bags. Saved a tip on that one. I would recommend if you want to enjoy the surroundings but not expect too much on the quality of the course and staff, if you can get a good rate

Enjoyed the challenge- Expected more people on the course - Played in under 3 hours

Roosters, chickens, peacocks & great views.

Very hilly, lots of walking even with the cart (cart path only much of the course). Lots of shots where feet above or below the ball.

High handicappers need to bring lots of golf balls.

Clubhouse closed at 2:30pm so we didn't get our after round beverages.

The foursome in front of us spent too much time looking for there lost balls.

If I lived here it might become my home course.

Beautiful jungle setting and a bit cooler than being at the coast. Course was in decent condition. Beautiful sweeping views once you get up to the top.

I played this course twice during my stay in Kona. I was surprised to see that there were few golfers playing on a clear day in the summer, but no waiting on either day. There are trees in bushy grass all over. Not an easy course to play, but a fun challenge for an average golfer. Peacocks waiting to take pics at every tee box. Beautiful scenery.