Big Cedar Lodge: Top 100 Golf Resorts in the World
Quick Facts
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Number of rooms
362 -
Amenities
spa / swimming pools / multiple restaurants / hiking / biking / fishing -
Number of courses
5 -
Course designers
Payne’s Valley Course (TGR Design); Ozarks National (Coore & Crenshaw); Buffalo Ridge (Tom Fazio); Top of the Rock (Jack Nicklaus); Mountain Top (Johnny Morris and Gary Player)
Resort Overview
In the heart of the Missouri Ozarks where he was raised, Bass Pro Shops founder Johnny Morris created Big Cedar Lodge as a portal to the great outdoors. He dreamed of helping guests connect with nature, and he looked to golf to help achieve that goal. In the decades since Morris first conceived it, Big Cedar has emerged as one of the country’s fastest-growing destinations in the game, home to five courses by marquee designers and host to an annual stop on the Champions Tour. Billed as a “wilderness resort” for good reason, the property blends seamlessly into an unspoiled landscape of piney forests and limestone caverns as well as rivers, creeks and lakes that make up some of the country’s most prized fishing waters.
Highlights
Top of the Rock is the first-ever par-3 course to host a professional championship
Seventy-feet wide and 200-feet deep, its belly bursting with limestone spires, the Cathedral of Nature is a giant, excavated sinkhole that doubles as a popular Big Cedar attraction, giving visitors an underground glimpse of the region’s geologic past
The 19th hole at Payne’s Valley is a waterfall-backed, island-green par-3 that makes a stunning stage for settling bets.
3 things to know
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Best time to go
Mid-April through October -
Best non-golf amenity
Golf muscles aching? Carve out some time for Fun Mountain, an adventure park that includes a full arcade, bumper cars, underwater-themed bowling, laser tag, golf simulator and much more. -
Insider Tip
Book a Lady Liberty dinner cruise. The property’s 62-foot custom-built yacht has throwback vibes with modern amenities. There’s no better way to take in Big Cedar’s natural splendors.
