Kona Country Club was the third course up on our visit to the Big Island. We stayed at the Houla Resort at Mauna Loa Village, just around the corner from the course. So, Kona Country Club was a convenient pick.

We had a late morning tee time and things here were busier compared to the other courses we played earlier in the week. Quite a few other groups were out golfing but thankfully the pace moved pretty fast. We played in about three and a half hours. A nice pace while on vacation!

Kona CC was built in the 1960’s and I believe there were two courses here at one point – a course near the ocean and another in the mountains. From what I can find, a renovation was completed where improvements were made to the course near the ocean and the course in the mountains was closed. I’m not sure who completed the renovation, but William Bell gets credit for the original design.

I found Kona CC to be an interesting place. The course sits on hilly land that overlooks Keauhou Bay. There are some very good views of the area and the course has a traditional “Hawaiian” look with many palm trees throughout the course. The front nine is on the south side of the proshop while the back nine is on the north side. Both sides have a few holes with some big elevation changes and other holes with more minor elevation changes. The terrain is one of the course’s most unique attributes.

The setting at Kona CC is pretty awesome and the course has multiple signature holes. On the front nine, the 2nd and 3rd holes are special. The 2nd is a reachable par-5 with a green that sits close to the ocean. The green is surrounded by palm trees and waves crash against the rocks nearby. The 3rd is a long par-3 with the ocean lurking to the right.

On the back nine, the 12th and 13th holes are the memorable holes. The 12th is another long par-3, this time with the ocean to the left. The 13th is a par-4 with a couple tee boxes tucked back in the lava rocks near the rugged coastline.

We played the black tees which are 72.0/125/6657. Honestly, I’m surprised the rating and slope aren’t higher. The fairways and greens are generous, but the greens are tough to putt. Putts break a lot and the downhill putts were hard to control. Also, there are quite a few semi blind shots. Local knowledge would be helpful.

Our green fee was $115 and for that price, I don’t have any complaints about the conditions. Everything was playable. As you’ll see in my pictures there were a number of dry spots on the fairways and tees. The black tee boxes looked like they could use some TLC. The greens were smooth and grainy.

Overall, I won’t say I loved the course – but for the price we paid, I’d certainly recommend a round at Kona CC. It is a good value. The greens are a handful and there is a lot of out of bounds. However, the setting and the holes near the ocean are unique.

Course Pictures (click any picture to scroll through the gallery):