2026 would’ve marked the 28th time Kapalua hosted the PGA Tour’s season opener. Drought ended that streak in October. Now, a single photo from the supposedly dead course is forcing fans to question everything.

The CBS golf writer, Patrick McDonald, shared the picture of the course on X, where the lush fairways look tournament-ready, contradicting months of dire warnings. “A photo from Kapalua just hit the inbox. Can’t believe they took this away from us,” Patrick wrote.

The $20 M signature event, Sentry, has been a flagship PGA Tour event since it was originally contested at Kapalua’s famous Plantation Course in 1999. This event marks the season opening, with past calendar year champions and the top 50 in the FedExCup. But in September 2025, the PGA Tour said that the tournament would not be contested at Kapalua in January 2026, as severe drought and water conservation rules had harmed the course’s agronomic health.

Drought affected more than 90% of Maui County, prompting regional water restrictions that limited irrigation at the Kapalua Resort. Finding a new location for The Sentry, either in Hawaii or on the mainland, was made more difficult by logistical issues, including event infrastructure and vendor scheduling. As a result, the $20M PGA Tour was canceled, and the Sony Open at the Waialae Country Club on the island of Oahu became the season opener.

This was the first time the event had to be canceled since 2020.

“I’m still in awe at how our agronomy team was able to pull off the Plantation Course recovery,” said Kevin Kammien, senior marketing manager at Kapalua Resort. “The turf was walking that fine line between life and death.”

The problems at the resort intensified when water was essentially shut off entirely. A lawsuit between the parties remains unresolved, leaving the resort’s long-term water access uncertain. With restricted flow insufficient for both courses, resort officials made a strategic gamble.

“We had to shift all of our water allotment from The Bay Course to The Plantation Course, or we certainly would have lost both courses,” Kammien explained. “No one on staff or other industry experts knew whether Plantation would recover or not until we tried. There is no manual for this type of recovery. Our team needed to rely on their vast experience and make numerous decisions on the fly as we progressed with this ambitious recovery plan.”

Amid all this, the picture ignited discussion among fans and golf analysts.

Golf community speaks on the iconic PGA Tour course

Golf Insider Dan Rapaport, who covers tournament logistics and course conditions, confirmed what industry sources were reporting. He wrote, “Goes along with what I’ve been hearing… Kapalua’s pretty much back to normal.”

The course reopened mid-November, showing “wall-to-wall perfection” by mid-December, per Golf.com‘s Andrew Penner.  Another fan challenged the official narrative: “You’re kidding, right? That looks nothing like what they described. So disappointed this tournament, the Sentry isn’t happening.”

As per reports, the 1st and 8th greens at Plantation died completely and required repropagation with thousands of nursery plugs. The Tour officially announced the cancelation on October 22. Sentry’s deal runs through 2035, but Hawaii’s logistical challenges persist.

One fan contextualized the timing. “PGA had to make a call. It looked awful 2-3 months ago. I got to play it on a perfect November day in 2010. It was majestic. I hope it comes back next year.”  Another golfer shared another picture in the comment section and wrote, “Played there a month ago. Was perfect…”

According to Penner, only 50 golfers were there on December 15th, making such firsthand accounts rare. The recovery timing, however, came too late for October’s scheduling decision.

“No shit! One of my favorites to watch,” wrote another fan.

In short, the contrast between bright post-drought pictures and the earlier decision to cancel the competition has sparked debate among fans. The PGA Tour’s decision highlights how environmental and logistical issues are increasingly affecting major athletic events, even after courses go back to normal.