Mauna Lani Golf
Ranked · 6 courses · updated 2026

The Best Golf Courses in Hawaii

Hawaii is resort golf at its most cinematic, fairways of green draped over black lava and red cliffs above the bluest Pacific, on islands a few hours apart. From the par 73 where the PGA Tour opens its season to the Robert Trent Jones course that started Hawaiian resort golf, here are the six we rate most highly, ranked, with our verdict on each and how to play it.

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By the GolfForKings editorial desk · How we rank · Last reviewed June 2026

Photograph: Mauna Lani Golf, Mauna Lani Golf, via Google

How we chose them

Resort golf in Hawaii began in 1964, when Laurance Rockefeller asked Robert Trent Jones Sr. to build a course on a barren lava field on the Big Island, and the result, Mauna Kea, proved that championship golf could be carved out of the islands' volcanic coast. Six decades on, the best of Hawaiian golf is spread across three islands. Maui holds the greatest concentration of quality, led by the two Kapalua courses and Wailea. The Big Island's sunny Kohala Coast strings together Mauna Kea, Hualalai and Mauna Lani along the lava. Kauai's lush North Shore is home to the cliffside drama of Princeville. The common thread is scenery few places on earth can rival, and conditioning to match.

We weighed design quality, conditioning, setting and tournament pedigree, and we favoured the courses that best reward a travelling golfer, almost all of which are open to resort and public play. Every fact here, from designers and opening years to host events, was checked at the time of writing. Where we mention green fees they are seasonal and indicative, and they run high at the marquee courses, so always confirm directly before booking. The verdicts are ours, and the order reflects our editors' view rather than any single published list. If you want a multi island trip costed and arranged, that is what our concierge does.

The ranking

01

The Plantation Course at Kapalua

Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw, 1991 · Par 73, about 7,600 yards · Maui

Hawaii's best course and the stage on which the PGA Tour opens every season at the Sentry Tournament of Champions, a Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw design from 1991 sprawling across the volcanic slopes above Kapalua on Maui's northwest coast. A par 73 stretching to some 7,600 yards, it is defined by colossal elevation change, vast tumbling fairways and trade winds that turn the downhill, downwind par 5 eighteenth into one of the most famous closing holes in golf. Bold, walkable in spirit and utterly spectacular, it is the round every visiting golfer wants.

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02

Mauna Kea Golf Course

Robert Trent Jones Sr., 1964 · Par 72 · Kohala Coast, Big Island

The course that started it all, Robert Trent Jones Sr.'s 1964 masterpiece on the Big Island, the first great resort course in Hawaii and still among the finest. It is celebrated for its third hole, a long par 3 that carries across a crashing Pacific inlet to a green on the far cliff, one of the most photographed holes in the world. Built on raw lava and beautifully restored over the years, it pairs classic Trent Jones strategy with sweeping ocean and mountain views, and remains a bucket list round on the Kohala Coast.

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03

Princeville Makai Golf Club

Robert Trent Jones Jr., 1971 · Par 72 · North Shore, Kauai

The most dramatic golf on Kauai, a Robert Trent Jones Jr. design from 1971 perched on the sea cliffs of the island's lush North Shore, with holes playing along Anini Beach and Hanalei Bay beneath the Bali Hai cliffs and the jagged backdrop of the Na Pali coast. Restored and immaculately kept, the Makai course blends ocean carries, jungle and mountain holes into a round of constant visual drama. For sheer beauty it has few peers anywhere in the islands, and it anchors a Kauai golf trip.

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04

Hualalai Golf Club

Jack Nicklaus, 1996 · Par 72, around 7,100 yards · Kohala Coast, Big Island

The most exclusive round in Hawaii, a Jack Nicklaus signature course opened in 1996 at the Four Seasons Resort Hualalai on the Big Island and reserved for resort guests and residents. The layout flows from a lush oasis across bright fairways set against black lava and returns to the ocean for a thrilling finish, including a par 3 seventeenth played straight at the sea. It hosts the season opening Mitsubishi Electric Championship on the PGA Tour Champions, and its conditioning, service and seclusion are second to none.

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05

Wailea Gold Course

Robert Trent Jones Jr., 1994 · Par 72 · Maui

The pick of the three courses at Wailea on Maui's sunny south coast, a Robert Trent Jones Jr. design from 1994 routed across old lava flows above the resort, with the ocean and the island of Kahoolawe in view. Known for its volcanic rock walls, native plantings and bold bunkering, the Gold is the most testing and most highly regarded of the Wailea trio, a proper championship layout that has hosted senior tour golf. Polished, scenic and easy to combine with Kapalua, it makes Maui a two centre golf island.

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06

Mauna Lani, South Course

Kohala Coast, Big Island

The most famous hole on the Kohala Coast after Mauna Kea's third belongs to the South Course at Mauna Lani, a short par 3 played across a churning ocean cove with the Pacific filling the view. The course winds through jet black lava fields and ancient fish ponds to the sea, a striking contrast of dark rock, green turf and blue water that is pure Big Island. Part of a polished resort with two courses, it completes a Kohala Coast trio alongside Mauna Kea and Hualalai and is a memorable, photogenic round.

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Designers, opening years and host events verified June 2026. Kapalua, Mauna Kea, Princeville Makai, Wailea and Mauna Lani are open to resort and public play; Hualalai is reserved for Four Seasons guests and residents. Green fees are seasonal and indicative and run high at the marquee courses. Course profiles are added across the site as the directory grows. Always confirm access and fees directly before booking. Check tee time availability.

Play the best of Hawaii

Tell us which of these are on your list and roughly when, and whether you want a single island or a multi island trip across Maui, the Big Island and Kauai. One concierge arranges the tee times, hotels and inter island flights and costs the trip to the head, with no obligation.

Hawaii golf questions

What is the best golf course in Hawaii?

The Plantation Course at Kapalua on Maui, a Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw design that hosts the PGA Tour's season opening Sentry Tournament of Champions, is widely considered Hawaii's best and is our pick, a dramatic par 73 of huge elevation change above the ocean. Mauna Kea on the Big Island and Princeville Makai on Kauai are the other perennial contenders.

Which Hawaii island has the best golf?

It depends on what you want. Maui has the most concentrated quality, with Kapalua and Wailea, and is the easiest base for a golf trip. The Big Island holds Mauna Kea, Hualalai and Mauna Lani along the sunny Kohala Coast. Kauai's North Shore has the spectacular cliff golf of Princeville Makai. A multi island trip can take in the best of all three.

When is the best time to play golf in Hawaii?

Hawaii plays golf year round in warm, steady temperatures. The drier, sunnier months from April to October are ideal, while winter brings more rain, bigger surf and the peak holiday crowds, though it is also when the PGA Tour opens its season at Kapalua. The leeward Kohala Coast on the Big Island is the driest golf area in the islands.

Are Hawaii golf courses open to visitors?

Mostly yes. Kapalua, Mauna Kea, Princeville Makai, Wailea and Mauna Lani are resort courses open to the public, often with a preference and better rates for resort guests. Hualalai is the exception, reserved for guests and residents of the Four Seasons Resort Hualalai. Green fees at the marquee courses are high. Always confirm access and fees directly before booking.

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Researched and written by the GolfForKings editorial desk. Last reviewed June 2026. We verify designers, opening years and host events at the time of writing and review them again on a schedule.