OAHU, HAWAII– Provided with a magnificent rainforest landscape, acclaimed Dye Design has created a Hawaiian golf treasure. At Royal Hawaiian, legendary Pete Dye and his son Perry have integrated crafty golf holes into tumbling terrain framed by ancient jungle trees upwards up of 100 feet tall at the foot of the Ko’olau Mountains in Oahu.
The back nine builds to an exciting finish as it winds through leafy corridors to fast bentgrass greens; players are presented with tantalizing risk-reward scenarios, exemplified by the 386-yard par-four 15th and the 218-yard par-3 16th. With the lush tropical surroundings and few signs of civilization, locals refer to Royal Hawaiian as Jurassic Park, and it’s a hit with most everyone who plays it. (www.pacificlinks.com)