No one knows precisely when the game of golf first reached some of the most isolated islands on earth. By one account, it arrived in the late 1800s, when descendants of missionaries began whacking small spheres across open land in Oahu’s Manoa Valley. But it was in 1898—marked by two pivotal events—that the seeds were truly planted for Hawaii’s rise as a world-class golf destination: the United States annexed Hawaii, and businessman Samuel Mills Damon built a golf course on a portion of his Moanalua Valley estate that would not later become Honolulu International Airport.

A century and a quarter later, the State of Hawaii is home to roughly 77 golf courses spread across six islands. Few would dispute that Hawaii ranks among the most fantasized-about travel destinations for golfers worldwide.

Hawaii’s golf courses are as varied as the islands themselves. From the dramatic Kalalau Mountains along Kauai’s north shore to the mesmerizing lava fields of the Big Island’s south, nature has bestowed extraordinary gifts upon the golf course architects eager to pay homage to the landscapes before them.

Oahu—anchored by Honolulu, which on its own would rank as the tenth-largest city in the United States—initially became the epicenter of golf activity in the islands. That dominance began to shift in the early 1960s, when the resort boom took hold with the construction of two courses by Robert Trent Jones, Sr. on the so-called “outer (or neighbor) islands”: Kaanapali on Maui’s western shore and Mauna Kea on the Kohala Coast of the Big Island. Set in an idyllic seaside environment amid vast expanses of seemingly frozen, jet-black lava, Mauna Kea revolutionized Hawaiian golf. Completed in 1964, it was the first course in the state built directly atop a lava flow. By crushing the soft lava rock, builders created a well-draining base upon which topsoil could be laid.

Over the past three decades, many of Hawaii’s golf courses have followed this architectural model, built in and around dense lava formations. While the Big Island remains the most prominent example, similar designs can be found on Kauai and on Maui, shaped in part by the dormant—though not extinct—volcano Haleakala.

By the mid-1990s, however, the most significant golf course boom since the mid-1960s came to a sudden halt. Lengthy recessions in both Japan and the United States played a role, but so did growing controversy surrounding golf course construction on islands where fertile agricultural land is rapidly disappearing and remote areas are increasingly protected from ecological disruption. Environmental impact fees imposed by the City and County of Honolulu have become so burdensome that turning a profit on new courses is nearly impossible. The most recent course to open on Oahu faced such severe financial strain from these fees that it took more than five years to open after construction was completed—and even now, one dollar from every green fee is paid to the county in perpetuity.

Still, despite the closure of 206 holes across 18 courses since 2008, Hawaii remains rich in golf opportunities. With careful planning, golfers can experience the islands on a modest budget or indulge at the highest end of the spectrum. For those who love the game, golf in Hawaii remains a richly rewarding—and often surreal—experience.