Theres more thats Hawaiian about the new
King Kamehameha Golf Club on Maui than just its name and location.
Meandering over
150 acres in the foothills of the West Maui Mountains, in an area
of central Maui called Waikapu, the private club is the elegant
reincarnation of the Grand Waikapu Country Club, which was in
operation from 1993 to 1999.
When Tokyo
businessman Makoto Kaneko bought the property and the adjacent
public Sandalwood Golf Course, which has been renamed the Kahili
Golf Course, in July 2004 through one of his companies, MMK Maui,
he made a commitment to honor Hawaiis culture and
history.
MMK Maui spent
$40 million to purchase, refurbish and enhance both 18-hole courses
and their clubhouses. A stone ahu, or altar, was erected at the
crossroads of the two courses for the Hawaiian community to use for
traditional ceremonies.
The ahu serves as
a reminder that we are merely guests upon this [land], said
Hawaiian authority Clifford Naeole, who was retained as MMK Mauis
cultural liaison to ensure proper protocol was followed during the
renovation process.
Named in honor of
the Hawaiian monarch credited with uniting the Islands under one
rule, the King Kamehameha Golf Club incorporates numerous elements
to elaborate on its Hawaiian theme.
Pairs of
endangered nene, Hawaiis state bird, strut through the grounds,
upon which flourish a host of tropical trees and plants, including
hibiscus, ti, Cook Islands pines, monkeypod, coconut palms,
eucalyptus, honeysuckle, bougainvillea and native ilima, akia and
wiliwili.
The
75,000-square-foot clubhouse is an adaptation of three previously
unexecuted Frank Lloyd Wright designs. Broad terraces open to a
breathtaking panorama encompassing Haleakala volcano, the verdant
plains of central Maui, Maalaea Bay to the south and Hookipa Bay to
the north.
Inside, the
Hawaiian tribute continues with commissioned works by acclaimed
local artists, including a dramatic, 15-foot-by-7-foot mural by
Herb Kawainui Kane depicting a meeting of important chiefs of
ancient Hawaii.
All employees
will soon complete a cultural course taught by Naeole, who said he
also hopes to plant a garden of native Hawaiian medicinal plants
and conduct cultural programs at the clubhouse.
I would like the
King Kamehameha Golf Club to be a place of inspiration and
education, he said.
For information,
contact Rick Castillo at (808) 249-2544, Ext. 1, or e-mail [email protected]. A new golf course Web
site, www.kamehamehagolf.com, was under construction at
press time.
To contact the reporter who wrote this article, send e-mail
to [email protected].