Princeville’s Prince adds royal touch-ups

One of Hawaii’s most dramatic and honored golf courses will add new drama in December. Kauai’s Princeville Prince Course, closed for renovation since January, will reopen Dec. 14. It started accepting tee time reservations this week.

The Prince covers 350 acres of cliffs, ravines, rolling terrain, tropical jungle, streams and jaw-dropping views. It has its own natural waterfall behind the 13th hole.

The renovation, originally scheduled for five months, included complete reconstruction of greens and remodeling of bunkers, adding tees, clubhouse renovation and clearing to return original views and layout.

There were surprises waiting on a Hanalei course that can get whipped by weather. All the rain gives Princeville its astonishing natural beauty, but it can be a bear on maintenance.

"We went in and knocked the jungle back," said director of golf Steve Murphy. "We have some really cool new waterways and ponds we never knew we had. It had become overgrown. This opened up new views and vistas. We also have new tee boxes.

"It’s going to be the same because the bones of the course are very good, top-100 material. But over time it got to a point where the jungle was kinda winning."

Kapalua Plantation and Princeville’s Prince, designed by Robert Trent Jones Jr., are the only Hawaii layouts in the 2011-2012 Golf Digest ranking of America’s 100 Greatest Courses. The Kauai course can play anywhere from 5,300 to 7,300 yards. Its first nine holes opened in 1987. The 18-hole course came out three years later.

After 20 years, it was time to take the course back from the natural elements that help make it so spectacular. Murphy and Jones both believe the new greens are the first thing returning players will notice. That’s once they get past the new Hawaii-themed clubhouse, which includes The Tavern restaurant by Roy Yamaguchi.

"Perhaps our most dramatic refinement efforts have been focused on the complete reconstruction of every green complex, recapturing hole locations that have been lost over time," Jones said in a news release. "We have gently reconfigured the contours in the green surfaces to accommodate the green speeds that will be achieved by the newly planted paspalum variety of turf grass. In addition, fairway mowing patterns have been widened dramatically to promote a more enjoyable experience for players of all skill levels."

The new SeaDwarf Seashore Paspalum greens are more tolerant to shade, wetness and salt water. The grass also helps choke weeds and requires less herbicides. It allows the course to run the greens anywhere from the normal 8 or 9 on the Stimpmeter, which measures speed, to 12 or 13, which is what Murphy predicts for next summer’s Prince Invitational.

The course is named for Hawaii’s Prince Albert Edward Kauikeaouli Leiopapa A Kamehameha, only son of King Kamehameha IV and Queen Emma. The prince, who died in 1862, visited the site when it was a sugar plantation owned by Robert Crichton Wyllie.