Overview
Though Turtle Bay Resort hugs the northern coastline of Oahu, the Pacific Ocean is only visible from the 17th hole on the Palmer course. The former 100 Greatest Public course has two distinct nines, with a forgiving front nine and a tighter, more demanding back side. Unlike many dramatically undulated Hawaiian layouts, the Palmer course is quite flat, with water in play on 14 holes. The Arnold Palmer design opened in 1992, but the property has quite an interesting history: It was used by the U.S. Army during World War II, with Nos. 15-18 serving as a landing strip and Nos. 5, 6 and 13 housing military personnel. The course hosted a PGA Tour Champions event in the mid 2000s, with Hale Irwin, Fred Funk and Jerry Pate all winning at Turtle Bay.
About
Awards
100 Greatest Public: Ranked from 2009-'16. Highest ranking: No. 78, 2015-'16.
Best in State: Ranked inside the top 10, 2003, 2009. Ranked 11th, 2011-'12, 2015-'16. Ranked 12th, 2013-'14. Ranked 14th, 2017-'18. Ranked inside the top 15, 2005-'07. Ranked 18th, 2023-'24.
Panelists
Ratings from our panel of 1,900 course-ranking panelists
100 GREATEST/BEST IN STATE SCORES
Shot Options
Character
Challenge
Layout Variety
Fun
Aesthetics
Conditioning
Reviews
Review
“It was interesting and fun to play Turtle Bay after playing the Kapalua Bay Course a week earlier. Both Palmer courses are in need of some serious love to bring them back to the condition that they had been known for. The Turtle Bay Palmer Course is a better challenge and was in much better shape than Kapalua's Bay Course. Part of the fun in playing this North Shore track is the weather. The day that I played a large storm had just come through the islands and the course was soaked. Fairways were soft and plugged easily off the tee, the greens were receptive (but very slow) and the bunkers were really wet. Large waves off the North Shore were being pushed by Kona winds and this limited the shot options significantly. Like Kapalua this is a resort course and gets a lot of play. Good natural aesthetics but not many views of the North Shore ocean. All in all a fun place to play but I'm not sure that its worth the longish drive from downtown Honolulu."
Read More2025
Review
“Great layout by Arnie. Beautiful routing through natural areas with lots of water and trees. Long par 4s to test length and short par 4s challenging accuracy. Very fun course!"
Read More2025
Review
“Great use of natural land, water ways and trees. Superb routing and variety allowing various shot options. Generous fairways and large green complexes allow for many different angles of play. Favorite hole #11 has double dog leg with water right and short, very challenging. #18 is classic risk reward finish."
Read More2025
Review
“Fun, thoughtful Arnold Palmer design. Good driving course, as each tee shot requires more thought than usual. Some lament the fact that the ocean is seen only on the 17th hole, but don't let that distract you from a fun design that does not rely on sheer length for its challenge."
Read More2022
Review
“Turtle Bay Palmer almost feels more like a Florida course than one in Hawaii. It is relatively flat, and the only ocean view you get is at the 17th green. Still, it is one of the better public options on Oahu -- it is much tamer and more familiar to play than Ko'olau or Royal Hawaiian."
Read More2021
Review
“The Palmer Course is a very good golf course on the north shore of Oahu. Quite possibly the best course on the island, it has several challenging holes to test your skill. From the tips the course is quite difficult, but from the forward tees it is very friendly. The greens are spacious, but difficult to read. The wind can blow at Turtle Bay, so an early tee time might be a good option. The clubhouse is great and the staff is friendly."
Read More2018
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