Caddie's Gear Advisor
Curated for today's 91°F · Clear
Ultralight Distance Drivers
Maximum carry in hot, low-drag conditions
UV Protection Apparel
UPF 50+ cooling fabrics for peak-sun rounds
Precision Rangefinders
Slope-adjusted yardage in any condition
Hydration & Cooling
Insulated bottles and cooling towels
Waikoloa Beach Course: Course Intelligence
Robert Trent Jones Jr. designed Waikoloa Beach Course in 1981 on a piece of Big Island, Hawaii Waikoloa lava-coast land north of the Mauna Kea property. Jones Jr. — Robert Trent Jones Sr.'s son, working through his own design office — routed the course as part of the broader Waikoloa Resort development through the early 1980s. The site is a stretch of the Kohala Coast lava-and-kiawe terrain that the Mauna Kea routing also occupies, but Waikoloa Beach plays at a slightly different orientation and gives the routing a different relationship to the trade winds and the ocean.
The course plays around 6,566 yards par 70 from the back markers, with paspalum turf and a slope in the upper 130s. Jones Jr. routed the eighteen holes through natural lava-rock outcrops with several holes playing along the Anaehoomalu Bay coast. The twelfth hole — a 505-yard par-5 with the ocean visible left of the fairway for the entire approach — and the seventh, a 175-yard par-3 across a natural lava-rock depression, are the routing's most-photographed holes. The lava-rock subsoil produces firm conditions year-round. The ancient Hawaiian fishponds (loko ia) that sit on the property are visible from several holes and are part of the cultural setting that distinguishes the routing from mainland resort courses.
Waikoloa Beach Course is part of the Waikoloa Beach Resort and is open to resort guests at premium daily-fee rates. The Waikoloa property also includes the Kings' Course (Tom Weiskopf/Jay Morrish 1990), and the two routings give the resort the variety that a single-course property cannot offer. Caddies are available; carts are standard for resort guest tee times.
Big Island Kohala Coast climate keeps Waikoloa Beach playable year-round with consistent trade winds. The leeward position keeps the property dry through most of the year — the windward side of the Big Island gets significantly more rain — and the Pacific marine breeze gives the routing reliable daily wind. The October through April dry season is the prime visitor stretch.
Related Reading
Before you tee off at Waikoloa Beach Course
How Cold Weather Steals Distance: The Ball Compression Physics Every Golfer Should Know
Every 10°F drop costs the average golfer two to four yards of driver carry. Here is the physics — ball compression, air density, muscle temperature — and the field data we pulled from G-Score-monitored cold rounds to show exactly how distance loss compounds, and how to compensate without changing your swing.
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Best Golf Weather by State: Ranking America by Average G-Score
We ranked all 50 US states by average G-Score golf playability. California tops the list, but the results beyond the top five may surprise you.
Read StoryDanorie
Editorial & Data
Golf Weather Score is built by Danorie. We compute the G-Score — our own playability rating — from live NOAA forecasts and published course scorecards, so any US course can be compared on any day with a single number. Methodology and data sources are documented on every page.
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When Waikoloa Beach Course plays best next weekend.
Friday 6am ET: peak G-Score windows for Waikoloa Beach Course, wind direction by hour, and one gear call. Three minutes to read, save you the round.
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