Sunday, April 29, 2001

[HAWAII'S SIGNATURE HOLES]

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KEN SAKAMOTO / STAR-BULLETIN
The 13th hole at the New Ewa Beach Golf Club plays 166
yards from the regular tee but can be stretched to 202 yards.
It features a lake in front of the green.

New Ewa Beach’s
lucky No. 13

The No. 13 is a classic par-3
hole that plays over the water
and into the wind

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By Grady Timmons
Special to the Star-Bulletin

OF THE MANY new courses that have been built west of Pearl Harbor, the New Ewa Beach Golf Club is among the best.

Architects Robin Nelson and Rodney Wright took a piece of land that had previously served as a dumping ground for old cars, garbage and toxic waste and created a beautiful and challenging course that also manages to be environmentally and culturally friendly.

Nelson and Wright used a type of turf grass called Seashore Paspalum at the New Ewa Beach Golf Club that thrives in the extremely brackish water that is available for irrigation in the Ewa area.

They restored several Hawaiian cultural sites and wove them into the design of the course.

They added moundings and lots of well-placed bunkers and made good aesthetic and strategic use of the existing keawe trees.

IN A NUTSHELL >> What: New Ewa Beach Golf Club >> Where: 91-050 Ft. Weaver Road, Ewa Beach >> Tee times: 689-8351 >> Year opened: 1991 >> Number of holes: 18 >> Rounds per year: 45,000 >> Designers: Nelson & Wright >> Course type: Semi-Private >> Guest policy: Open To Public >> Walking allowed: No >> Soft-spike facility: No >> Club rental: Yes >> Number of days for advance tee times: 7 >> Fees: Kamaaina $35 weekdays, $45 weekend; Mainland visitors $90, every day; International $115 every day >> Putting surface: Bermuda >> Teeing ground: Paspalum >> Fairway turf: Paspalum

They carved out a series of lakes that catch the wayward slice, as well as storm run-off.

And they did it all on just 135 acres of land, which is about 25 yards under the accepted minimum for an 18-hole layout.

From the back tees, the New Ewa Beach Golf Club measures 6,777 yards.

It's a shotmaker's course, requiring accuracy and creativity more than length.

It has a variety of engaging holes, but perhaps the best is the 13th, a classic par-3 that plays over water and into the wind.

From the regular tees, the 13th measures 166 yards, but it can be stretched to 202.

A lake extends from the front of the tee to the front of the green and then wraps around its right side.

Two large bunkers, built into the side of a hill, guard the left side of the green. The golfer who gets in these bunkers often faces a tricky downhill shot back toward the pin -- and the water.

The hole's difficulty can vary, depending on the strength of the wind and the location of the tees and pin.

The green is sufficiently wide but also quite deep, making a back pin placement a considerably longer shot.

Most golfers are happy just to make it over the water at the 13th.

It's a fun shot and hole -- the first in a series of six strong finishing holes at the New Ewa Beach Golf Club, five of which play over or alongside water.