Kauai Lagoons Golf Club - Kiele Mauka nine - 5th
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Kauai Lagoons Golf Club - Kiele Mauka nine - 5th
Kauai Lagoons Golf Club on Kauai got three new holes in a recent renovation, including the par-3 fifth on the Kiele Moana nine. Mike Bailey/GolfAdvisor
Kauai Lagoons Golf Club - Kiele Mauka nine - 1st
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Kauai Lagoons Golf Club - Kiele Mauka nine - 1st
Kiele Mauka, the inland nine, is usually the opening course at Kauai Lagoons G.C. This is the opening hole, a 438-yard par 4. Mike Bailey/GolfAdvsisor
Kauai Lagoons Golf Club - Kiele Mauka nine - 3rd
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Kauai Lagoons Golf Club - Kiele Mauka nine - 3rd
Large bunkers provide protection on the par-4 third on the Kiele Mauka nine at Kauai Lagoons Golf Club. Mike Bailey/GolfAdvisor
Kauai Lagoons G.C. - Kiele Mauka nine - 5th
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Kauai Lagoons G.C. - Kiele Mauka nine - 5th
Here's the tee shot on the 216-yard par-3 fifth on the Kiele Mauka nine at Kauai Lagoons G.C. Mike Bailey/GolfAdvisor
Kauai Lagoons G.C. - Kiele Mauka nine - 6th
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Kauai Lagoons G.C. - Kiele Mauka nine - 6th
Hit a good tee shot over the ravine on the short par-5 sixth Kauai Lagoons' Kiele Mauka nine and you can reach the green in two. Mike Bailey/GolfAdvisor
Kauai Lagoons G.C. - Kiele Moana nine - 8th
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Kauai Lagoons G.C. - Kiele Moana nine - 8th
The eighth on Kauai Lagoons' Kiele Mauka nine is a medium-length par 3 with a small green protected by water and a bunker. Mike Bailey/GolfAdvisor
Kauai Lagoons G.C. - Kiele Moana nine - 9th
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Kauai Lagoons G.C. - Kiele Moana nine - 9th
One of the toughest holes at Kauai Lagoons G.C. is the 459-yard, par-4 ninth on the Kiele Mauka nine. Mike Bailey/GolfAdvisor
Kauai Lagoons G.C. - Kiele Moana nine - 3rd
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Kauai Lagoons G.C. - Kiele Moana nine - 3rd
The easiest hole at Kauai Lagoons Golf Club is the 367-yard par-4 third on the Kiele Moana nine. Mike Bailey/GolfAdvisor
Kauai Lagoons G.C. - Kiele Moana nine - 4th
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Kauai Lagoons G.C. - Kiele Moana nine - 4th
The par-4 fourth on Kauai Lagoons' Kiele Moana nine heads out to the ocean. Mike Bailey/GolfAdvisor
Kauai Lagoons G.C. - Kiele Moana nine - 5th
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Kauai Lagoons G.C. - Kiele Moana nine - 5th
You putt above the Pacific on the green of the par-3 fifth on Kauai Lagoons' Kiele Moana nine. Mike Bailey/GolfAdvisor
Kauai Lagoons G.C. - Kiele Moana nine - lighthouse
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Kauai Lagoons G.C. - Kiele Moana nine - lighthouse
Looking back from the tee box of Kauai Lagoons' Kiele Moana fifth is the Ninini Point Lighthouse, which was built in 1906. Mike Bailey/GolfAdvisor
Kauai Lagoons G.C. - Kiele Moana nine - 6th
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Kauai Lagoons G.C. - Kiele Moana nine - 6th
The difficult 473-yard, par-4 sixth on Kauai Lagoons' Kiele Moana nine does play shorter than its yardage. Mike Bailey/GolfAdvisor
Kauai Lagoons G.C. - Kiele Moana nine - 7th
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Kauai Lagoons G.C. - Kiele Moana nine - 7th
The short par-4 seventh on Kauai Lagoons' Kiele Moana nine is drivable, but it comes with great risk. Mike Bailey/GolfAdvisor
Kauai Lagoons golf course - Kiele Moana nine - 9th
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Kauai Lagoons golf course - Kiele Moana nine - 9th
The finishing hole at Kauai Lagoons Golf Club (Kiele Moana's ninth) is the no. 2 handicap hole on the course. Mike Bailey/GolfAdvisor
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Kauai Lagoons Golf Club in Hawaii: Renovated ocean delight boasts spectacular seaside holes

LIHUE, Hawaii -- Sometimes you get addition by subtraction, which is exactly what happened after a 2011 renovation reduced the number of holes at Kauai Lagoons Golf Club from 36 to 27 that includes 18 championship holes. The former Kiele Course now boasts two nines, the Kiele Mauka inland course and the Kiele Moana nine, which features three brand new holes as part of a long stretch on the ocean.

Together, the two nines make up a par 72 that plays 7,156 yards from the back tees. Architect Jack Nicklaus, who came back to supervise the renovation on his signature layout, called the par-3 fifth on the Kiele Moana nine "one of the best holes anywhere." Playing over the Pacific into a green rising above the ocean, it's followed by two more holes on the ocean, which are two of the most unique par 4s you'll find anywhere in Hawaii. The golf course is an amenity of the Marriott's Kauai Lagoons-Kalanipu'u Beach Resort.

Mike Bailey is a former Golf Advisor senior staff writer based in Houston. Focusing primarily on golf in the United States, Canada, the Caribbean and Latin America with an occasional trip to Europe and beyond, he contributes course reviews, travel stories and features as well as the occasional equipment review. An award-winning writer and past president of Texas Golf Writers Association, he has more than 25 years in the golf industry. He has also been on staff at PGA Magazine, The Golfweek Group and AvidGolfer Magazine. Follow Mike on Twitter at @MikeBaileyGA and Instagram at @MikeStefanBailey.
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Kauai Lagoons Golf Club in Hawaii: Renovated ocean delight boasts spectacular seaside holes