By John Brasier
Publisher
When Triad golfers plan a golf buddies trip for the spring or fall, many of the same destinations are sure to come up.
Pinehurst and Carolinas coast enclaves from the Outer Banks to Hilton Head Island are no-brainers. Lake Oconee, TPC Sawgrass and Alabama’s Robert Trent Jones Trail are among other easy drive destinations. Wiling to fly and pay top-dollar? The list starts with Pebble Beach, Bandon Dunes and the Wisconsin coast (Kohler) of Lake Michigan.
But what about a family vacation that has elite golf AND many kid-friendly, non-golf attractions — at a moderate, Middle America cost?
Take a look at Branson, Missouri, where Bass Pro Shops founder Johnny Morris has added spectacular golf to a list of attractions including fishing and boating at pristine Table Rock Lake; Silver Dollar City, a world-famous mountain theme park that’s regarded as more authentic than younger, and now-sister property, Dollywood; dinner cruises on two lakes; and dozens of indoor and outdoor facilities in the scenic Ozark Mountains offering country music, comedy and Christian entertainment.
The myriad of activities and shows are bolstered by a downtown entertainment, restaurant and shopping district, Branson Landing, along Lake Taneycomo in charming, hilly downtown Branson. Hundreds of affordable restaurants as well as the requisite tourist venues — Ferris wheel, go-karts, mini golf, zip lines, water slides — are scattered throughout a 10-mile-or-so area.
Branson Landing with fountains along Lake Taneycomo has several restaurants and retailers and is anchored on one end by Bass Pro Shops.
For golfers, Branson has burst upon on the national radar in the past few years.
Morris’ 4,600-acre Big Cedar Lodge Resort, a few miles south of Branson, unveiled Ozarks National, a Bill Coore/Ben Crenshaw layout built along ridges overlooking the countryside, in 2019.
Ozark National offers spectacular holes set along ridges offering panaramic views of the surrounding Branson area.
Payne’s Valley, a tribute to four-time major champion Payne Stewart, an Ozarks native who grew up in Springfield, opened in 2021, in a valley in a layout continuing with a post-round, par-3 19th hole over water to a green framed by a giant limestone cliff wall and waterfalls. The experience concludes with a scenic ride along a winding path inside the limestone wall to the mountaintop clubhouse.
Big Cedar’s other 18-hole golf masterpiece is Buffalo Springs Ridge, a Tom Fazio beautiful layout with undulating terrain winding through scenic rock formations, lakes, creeks and waterfalls.
Not to forget Top of the Rock, a nine-hole Jack Nicklaus design with marvelous views of Table Rock (above photo of the ninth green with Table Rock Lake in the background from the tee) that co-hosted a PGA Tour Champions Legends of Golf event with Buffalo Springs for six years beginning in 2014. For two years beginning with its opening in 2018, Gary Player’s 13-hole Mountaintop design was added to the Champions Tour venue.
The soonest coming attraction is Cliffhangers, an 18-hole par-3 course and pet project of Morris and son John Paul that stretches across 50 acres of cliffs below Mountaintop. Billed by Big Cedar “as the most fun par-3 course in the world,” the course, which will have some holes longer than 200 yards, is expected to open in 2025.
Big Cedar courses also are supported by spectacular, outdoors-themed pro shops and a variety of drinking holes and restaurants. The Top of the Rock clubhouse includes an Ozarks museum, a golf-cart ride through caves and the local countryside, and Arnie’s Barn, a Tex-Mex restaurant inspired by the culinary tastes of Arnold Palmer, who along with Nicklaus, Player and a multitude of NASCAR drivers and other celebrities provide memorabilia inside at Top of the Rock.
Golfers and non-golfers take the Lost Canyon Cave Nature Trail in a golf cart departing from the Top of the Rock clubhouse.
The beautiful landscaping, meticulously groomed grounds and luxurious faciltiies in a casual environment sets Big Cedar apart from other resorts. Plus, who can’t appreciate the free bison dogs given away at on-course snack buildings?
How highly is Big Cedar golf regarded? In its Missouri course rankings (private and public) Golf Digest ranks Ozarks National No. 3, Payne’s Valley No. 7 and Buffalo Ridge Springs No. 8. Though pricey for public golf, The Big Cedar courses, the publication’s top 3 public access courses in the state, are 50 percent or more affordable than the likes of Pebble Beach, Pinehurst, Bandon Dunes and Kohler and TPC Sawgrass.
That’s Big Cedar golf in a nutshell. In season, non-resort guests should expect to pay fees of about $275 to play Payne’s Valley, $215 for Ozarks National, $130 for Top of the Rock and $80 for Mountaintop, a walking-only course. Buffalo Ridge Springs, closed until June 2025 for greens renovations, is priced about the same as Ozarks National.
Resort guests — Big Cedar has 362 different private accommodations, including lodge rooms, golf condos, cottages, cabins and luxury camping — receive a small discount and tee time priority.
But Branson golf is bigger than Big Cedar. Branson Hills, designed by Chuck Smith and PGA Tour player Bobby Clampett is a fantastic layout, ranked as Missouri’s No. 2 public-access course — behind Ozarks National (prior to the opening of Payne’s Valley) — by Golfweek. Branson Hills fees start at $150 in season.
Branson Hills, like the layouts at Big Cedar, is considered one of Missouri’s best courses.
Ledgestone Country Club, an upscale par-71 layout from designer Paul Clark, has fees starting at $85 in season. Pointe Royale, along the banks of Taneycomo, is a 6,300-yard course with in-season rates beginning at $110. Thousand Hills, a par-64 layout, is $94 in season, and Holiday Hills, a par-68 local favorite, has a rack rate of about $60.
Though golf isn’t the preeminent draw to Branson, it’s lure is gaining traction. As evidence, The Social Birdy, an upscale sports bar and restaurant with a golf pro shop and simulators inside, as well as an outdoor facility with a putting course, pickleball courts and bocce, opened in 2024.
Back to the family attractions, which include many of the same (Titanic and Ripley’s museums, etc.) tourist venues as Sevierville and Pigeon Forge.
Silver Dollar City has a large number of rides, including a half dozen roller coasters, train and kids’ rides and a 13-acre water park. Shops offer a variety of handmade crafts. Plus, glassblowers and blacksmiths work on site and interact with guests. Various music shows run each day. The park, comfortably blended into hilly terrain with mature trees feels more like a small town than a garish, especially at night lighted with special displays leading up to Christmas.
Blacksmiths are among the artisan whose work can be watched at Silver Dollar City.
Near Silver Dollar City, Showboat Branson Belle is a multi-level vessel offering dinner cruises two times per day along Table Rock, a clear, 43,000-acre U.S. Army Corps of Engineers lake with limited development along the shoreline. The lake is a regional fishing favorite for catfish, bass and rainbow trout.
Many of Branson’s music shows include comedy. Music facilities, include the 3,000-seat Mansion Theatre and Yakov Smirnoff’s comedy theater. Shepherd of the Hills, a park with rides, outdoor attractions and music shows, is a tribune to the 1941 John Wayne movie of the same name.
Downtown Branson, which sits atop a hill above Branson Landing and Taneycomo, has a variety of quaint shops and eclectic country cafes and retailers, including Dick’s 5 & 10, an old-style general store complete with buckets of individual candies.
The Branson Belle offers two dinner cruises each day on Table Rock Lake.
Perhaps the Midwest outpost for Southern chains, Branson Landing, anchored at one end by a Bass Pro Shop store, has retailers including Mellow Mushroom and Belk. Restaurants are named for Guy Fieri and Paula Deen. Greensboro-based Simply Southern has a store a few miles away at Tanger Outlets Branson.
Big Cedar also plays host to non-golfers, who pay a gate fee to the resort to see the impressive Ancient Ozarks Natural History Museum, take the cave trail and visit several on-property restaurants.
Arnie’s Barn, with nearby views of Top of the Rock course, is open only from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., featuring a variety of fajitas. Mountain Top Grill, overlooking Payne’s Valley, is a popular spot open for breakfast, lunch and dinner with menu ranging from crab cake appetizers, burgers, sandwiches, soups and salads to Wagya steaks, wood-fired salmon and desserts.
The historic Worman House at Big Cedar features a bistro with fining dining upstairs and Harry’s Cocktail Lounge & Bar, a place to enjoy a variety of fine wine, whiskey s, cocktails and cigars, provides an alternative to The Wine Cellar at Top of the Rock.
At Devil’s Pool, guests dine in an intimate stone-line dining room with a hand-wrought metal chandeliers, a 100-year-old mahogany bar and antique furnishings. The glass-walled Osage Restaurant at Top of the Rock is known for its views and popular Sunday brunch.
The Osage Restaurant at Big Cedar’s Top of the Rock offers a rotunda
Off the resort, top restaurants include the Level 2 Steakhouse, a white-tablecloth, traditional steakhouse in the Hilton Branson Convention Center at Branson Landing. A unique option is Keeter Center at College of the Ozarks, where a sophisticated, fine-dining menu boasts a variety of products raised or grown on the college’s farm, operated by students in lieu of tuition. With a variety appetizers, steak, seafood, chicken, pork and pasta entrees, and an extensive dessert menu, Keeter is not a college cafeteria.
The best nightspots in the area for golfers, and perhaps older children, include Tall Tales Bar and Grill, an upscale sports bar next to Angler’s Lodge, a fellow Bass Pro Shops property along U.S. 65.
For decades, Branson’s main arteries, among them U.S. 65 and Missouri 76 (Country Boulevard), have been home to mom-and-pop restaurants and small hotels. Over the last few decades, major restaurant and retail chains have moved in.
Upscale resorts attract guests throughout the year. Those include Branson Westgate Resort with facilities including indoor and outdoor pools, an indoor fitness center, mini golf, a resort store and eatery with a Starbucks, Branson Westgate has a variety of modern cabins and condo buildings with kitchens as well as a main lodge.
Westgate Resort Branson has accommodations including the main lodge in the photo as well as a variety of cabins and condos and a plethora of amenities.
A road trip from the Triad can be made in about 15 hours by vehicle. Flights can be booked with one stop from Piedmont Triad International Airport to Springfield-Branson National Airport. Springfield, home to the original and world’s largest Bass Pro Shops store, is about 15 minutes from the airport and less than an hour north of Branson on U.S. 65.
Want to see the Kansas City Chiefs or St. Louis Cardinals, two of the country’s most popular pro sports franchises? Branson is about 210 miles from Kansas City via U.S. 65, Missouri 13 and Missouri 7; and 250 miles via U.S,. 65 and Interstate 44 (Historic Route 66) from St. Louis.
The typical drive to Branson from the Triad would go through Nashville and St. Louis. The stretch from St. Louis to Springfield on I-44 passes Meramac Caverns, a popular destination known as a Jesse James hideout, for years advertised on faded barns throughout U.S. highways.
