The dramatic Coore & Crenshaw Plantation Course in West Maui — for 25 years the PGA Tour's season opener. How to play its huge elevation changes and trade winds, the Bay Course, when to go, and the resort's story after the fires and drought.
Kapalua sits on the north-west tip of Maui, and its Plantation Course is one of the most spectacular resort layouts in American golf: a Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw design opened in 1991, routed across enormous ridges and valleys tumbling toward the Pacific, where downhill holes play far shorter than the card and the trade winds turn every club choice into a guess. For 25 years — from 1999 through 2025 — it opened the PGA Tour season each January with the Sentry Tournament of Champions, the winners-only event where players launched drives absurd distances down the reachable par-5 18th.
It's a public, resort-access course anyone can book. This guide covers how to play the Plantation and its gentler sibling the Bay Course, when to go, and the honest recent picture — because Maui's 2023 wildfires and a 2025 drought closure have made the last few years anything but normal for Kapalua.
Where
Kapalua, north-west Maui, Hawaii — about 16 miles north of Lahaina
Courses
The Plantation Course (Coore/Crenshaw, par 73) + the Bay Course (Arnold Palmer/Francis Duane, par 72)
Nearest airport
Kahului (OGG), roughly a 50–60 min drive; tiny Kapalua (JHM) is closer for inter-island hops
Best time
Year-round golf; April–May and September–October are drier and less busy than peak winter
Access
Public / resort — book direct; luxury lodging at the Ritz-Carlton and Montage nearby
Note
The Plantation reopened to play in November 2025 after a drought-related turf closure
The courses
The Plantation Course
Bill Coore & Ben Crenshaw · 1991 (renovated by Coore & Crenshaw, 2019) · 18 holes · Resort · par 73 · ~7,596 yds
Host of the PGA Tour's Sentry Tournament of Champions, 1999–2025; widely ranked among the top resort courses in the US
The Plantation is big, bold golf on a huge scale — wide fairways draped over dramatic ridgelines, deep gullies you carry or skirt, and greens set to use the land's natural fall. The scale flatters everyone: gravity-aided downhill drives fly forever, and the closing par-5 18th plunges downhill so far that tour players routinely reached it with a mid-iron second, which is why it produced such absurd winning scores in the Sentry.
The catch is the wind. West Maui's trades can howl across the exposed ridges, and judging a downhill, downwind (or into-wind) shot to a firm green is the whole challenge here — it's a course that's genuinely fun off the right tees but demands respect for the conditions. A 2019 renovation by the original architects rebuilt the greens and refreshed the turf and bunkering.
The Bay Course
Arnold Palmer & Francis Duane · 1975 · 18 holes · Resort · par 72
Kapalua's original course, opened in 1975, runs closer to the shoreline and is a more forgiving, more sheltered companion to the Plantation — with its own signature moment in the oceanfront par-3 5th, which plays across an inlet of the Pacific. It's the natural second round of a Kapalua visit and an easier, friendlier walk.
How visitors play Kapalua
Both courses are open to resort guests and the public, booked directly through Kapalua Golf. There's no on-site hotel branded 'Kapalua', but the Ritz-Carlton Kapalua and the Montage Kapalua Bay sit within the resort, along with condo and villa rentals, and stay-and-play arrangements are common. Carts are standard — the Plantation's elevation changes are severe, and it's a long, hilly course rather than a walk in the park.
The Plantation in particular rewards a little humility: play it from a tee that lets you enjoy the downhill drama rather than fighting the wind from the tips. Confirm current conditions and tee-time availability with the course directly before you travel.
The honest recent picture — fires, drought and the Sentry
Maui's catastrophic August 2023 wildfires devastated the historic town of Lahaina with terrible loss of life. Kapalua itself, about 16 miles to the north, was not burned, and its courses reopened within weeks — but the resort's staff and the wider community were deeply affected, and recovery on Maui is ongoing. If you visit, do so as a considerate guest of a place still healing.
Then a prolonged drought and water-conservation limits forced the Plantation Course to close in September 2025 to restore turf health; it reopened to play on 10 November 2025. Separately, the PGA Tour announced that the Sentry would not be contested at Kapalua in 2026 — the Sony Open now opens the season — leaving the tournament's long-term future here uncertain. None of that changes what the Plantation is to play; it just means you should check the current status before booking.
When to go
Maui is a year-round golf destination with warm temperatures every month. Peak season is the winter (roughly December–March), when crowds and prices are highest and the north shore can be wetter and windier. The shoulder months — April–May and September–October — tend to be drier, quieter and better value, and are a sweet spot for a Kapalua trip. Trade winds are a factor any time of year, especially on the Plantation's exposed ridges.
How to build the trip
Kapalua is a destination in itself — two courses, world-class lodging, beaches and a low-key luxury feel at the quiet end of Maui. Most visitors pair it with the rest of the island rather than other courses, though Maui has several other strong layouts within reach. It's the tropical, big-scenery counterpoint to a desert trip like TPC Scottsdale or the coastal links feel of Pebble Beach — long flights aside, it's one of the great bucket-list golf experiences in the US.
What to pack
The kit this trip demands
Kapalua is warm, humid and often very windy, with fierce sun and a big, hilly walk-or-ride — pack for heat, sun and the trades:
Yes. It's a public, resort-access course open to guests and visitors, booked directly through Kapalua Golf. It reopened to play in November 2025 after a drought-related turf-restoration closure, so check current status before booking.
Does Kapalua still host the PGA Tour?
Not in 2026. The Plantation Course hosted the season-opening Sentry Tournament of Champions from 1999 through 2025, but the PGA Tour announced the Sentry would not be contested at Kapalua in 2026 amid Maui's drought and water limits, and its long-term future there is uncertain. The Sony Open now opens the season.
Was Kapalua affected by the 2023 Maui wildfires?
The fires devastated the historic town of Lahaina, about 16 miles south, with tragic loss of life. Kapalua itself did not burn and its courses reopened within weeks, but the resort's staff and the wider community were deeply affected and recovery is ongoing. Visit as a considerate guest.
Which is better at Kapalua, the Plantation or the Bay Course?
The Plantation Course is the headline act — dramatic, large-scale and a former PGA Tour venue. The Bay Course is older, gentler and more sheltered, with a lovely oceanfront par-3 5th, and makes an ideal, friendlier second round.
When is the best time to golf at Kapalua?
It's year-round, but the shoulder months of April–May and September–October are typically drier, quieter and better value than peak winter. Expect trade winds any time of year, especially on the exposed Plantation ridges.
