Nice course and staff overpriced club rentals. I chose the more expensive Cleveland clubs to rent. Driver light as a feather had to switch to the 3 wood which was much better off the tee. No sand wedge which was ridiculous. Luckily my local playing partner let me use his when needed. Also, no towel provided with club rentals. Definitely not worth the . cost was bitter off renting the lower cost Titlelist set which I later found out had a sand wedge. My advice is to just rent the Titleist. Had a great time regardless.

What a unique and well-designed course. Supurb layout, maybe the best I've ever played. Every hole feels special and challenging in it's own right, with multiple ways to play. Not to mention the volcano views and jungle atmosphere feel straight out of Jurassic Park. Greens are highly variable in size and leveling, and in good shape. Some fairways are generous, and some are narrow. Water features on a number of holes, including the most beautiful island par 3 (17th) I've ever played. This 17th hole is made more interesting that it is a twin to the TPC Sawgrass 17th, which was designed by the course architect Perry Dye's father, Pete Dye. Additionally, topography is varied throughout the course without being overbearing. Lots of trees, heavy jungle rough, and many well-placed sand traps. Not an easy track. If you're thinking of playing here for a 5-star resort experience, I would skip. The staff is friendly and doing their best, but this is ultimately a failed country club turned mostly municipal golf course. So it's a little shabby, some tee boxes are uneven, and would need a major rennovation to compete with Mauna Kea or Hualalei. But there's literally zero development on the course (yet! the course is for sale) to distract from the many bird varieties and endless flora, and on the first tee box, on a clear day, you can see volcanos every way you look. The weather is an easy 10-15 degrees coolor than the coastal courses, and a little bit of fairway rain was more refreshing than frustrating. Yes the tiny pro shop could not have tarps on the roof, and the rental clubs were pretty rough, but if you love the game of golf and the challenge of playing an incredible course design carved out of a volcanic jungle, then you'll have as good a time as we did. 10/10 would play this hidden gem again.

Enjoyable experience while on the big island. A bit more expensive than what I was expecting since many sites pointing to the course indicated that a small bucket of balls was included. I rented clubs and no game balls were included (many club rentals I've done come with game balls, usually two sleeves). This is my first Hawaiian course play. Course was in decent shape, fairways had plenty of carry. The greens were fair. Staff was quite helpful. Not as much ocean scenery along the course as some of the marketing leads one to believe. The course is fun to play with plenty of dog legs, undulating fairways. Your first time playing I recommend a course map app so you can see hidden obstacles.

This review is written out of love for the beautiful scenery up in the mountains, the quirky and mostly fun course layout, and the nice staff. My two frustrations with playing at Makani were: 1. The tee times were unorganized in terms of timing and group size, which led to a backed up and slow round. 3 groups of varying sizes were stacked per hole for the majority of 18. 2. Mandatory carts. I politely asked to walk and was not allowed to. This is not unique to Makani, but is a big frustration for me on golf courses. I find that walking contributes to the enjoyment of the game and allows for a bit of exercise. This course is not a difficult walk; I play quickly, am a single digit handicap and am in good shape. I spent most of the day waiting for other folks to hit shots, thus I would have rather been able to do so on foot.

First-timer. Course was in great shape, greens were very fast - for me, a muni player! Plenty of great scenery, but I spent most of my time looking at fairways instead of grabbing my camera. Best part? All the beautiful Nene's! I will be back!