NBC Insider Reveals the ‘Real Issue’ That Forced PGA Tour to Cancel $20M Event at Kapalua

For the first time in 26 years, the Kapalua Plantation Course won’t be opening the PGA Tour. The 7,516 yards of rolling hills with a stunning backdrop of the ocean that significantly boosted Maui’s economy have slipped into a jarring, dried-up visual, forcing The Sentry to fetch a new course. The root cause, though, is a product of many years.

COVID, the wildfires, and the drought conditions have slowly seeped into Maui, prominently affecting its farming and tourism over the years. The once-abundant pineapple and sugarcane crops that ensured the fires were kept away, thanks to their irrigation, have also dwindled. The results of the situation appear in the Stage 3 water shortage declared by the County of Maui Department of Water Supply. However, as far as Kapalua goes, water itself is not really the biggest issue.

“The real issue here, in my mind, is not the water itself,” Mark Rolfing, aka Mr Hawaii, noted on the Fried Egg Golf Podcast with host Andy Johnson. “The real issue now on West Maui and for Kapalua in particular is the water delivery system.

“There is about an 11-mile waterway that comes down the mountain from the watershed, which is basically a ditch. That’s over 100 years old. It is a really old system that is failing and has never been kept up and repaired, and it would be a very expensive fix.

“But the real issue now is, if that system is not fixed, I don’t see what the litigation that’s going on out there now. I don’t see that being resolved in the short term. Therefore, the only way to keep the golf courses alive there is to use surface water, which is questionable at best, as you can see by the decision to not play The Sentry.”

The Pu‘u Kukui Watershed Preserve that Rolfing speaks about has been ensuring a continual water supply to Maui for years. According to U.S. Geological Survey data, the watershed itself receives 225 inches of rain per year, with an area stretching across 8000 acres in West Maui. It is the largest private nature preserve in the state, which was designated by the Maui Land and Pineapple Company in 1988.

The same company is also responsible for maintaining the ditch that supplies water to residents, farmers, and businesses in Kapalua and West Maui. However, the community now blames MLP (Maui Land & Pineapple Co. Inc.) for neglecting the ditch’s maintenance, which is contributing to the water shortage. Among them is Todashi Yanai, the president of TY Management, who also owns the Kapalua Plantation.

“MLP is doing a terrible, actionable job of complying with its responsibilities as the ditch system’s owner and operator,” a lawsuit filed on Aug. 18 alleged. It went on to accuse MLP of failing to maintain the infrastructure and depriving numerous people of a water supply.

The MLP CEO, Race Randle, has stated that the company is following the commission’s guidelines to prioritize streamflow and traditional and customary uses. Drinking water and fire protection storage top the list, leaving irrigation for commercial use on the back burner. It simply means, the Kapalua Plantation Course will be short of water supply to maintain its greens and host the all prominent Sentry Tournament of Champions in January 2026.

Kapalua has hosted the now-signature $20 million event since 1999, when it first moved from La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, California. To no surprise, it has been a ground for some of the most iconic moments ever since. Just earlier this year, Hideki Matsuyama broke all records by scoring the best 72-hole average score during The Sentry in January. But looks like we won’t be seeing a return to the course for some time.

Moreover, considering 90% of the Maui residents were affected by drought in September, the chances of reopening anytime soon remain bleak. The best hope? 2027, according to Rolfing.