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HOLLISTER, Mo. - Having seen nearly 700 different golf courses so far in my life, it takes a lot to truly wow me.
That's not to say that all new golf courses are derivative or unoriginal. But features, holes and courses that truly stand out are rare.
When I turned a corner in my golf cart and realized that I would need to play my next wedge shot from a cave, through a waterfall and downhill about 40 feet to the green below, I was confused, then intrigued, then downright tickled.
So, apparently, were other golfers online when I shared my experience.
The newest golf experience at Big Cedar Lodge in the southern Missouri Ozarks, Cliffhangers is a viral video in golf course form. Its 18 par 3s - most of which will be playable with the four or five shortest clubs in a golfer's bag - comprise an all-out thrill-ride that seeks to stake a claim that a short course can be a bucket-list course, too.
With its official July 4, 2025 opening, Cliffhangers joins Big Cedar's already-eclectic roster of five golf courses to form the most diverse group of golf courses I have yet seen at any one property, from fodder for striped-shirted traditionalists to big-letter-hat-wearing golf bros and everyone in between.
The resort has a stronger personality than almost any other because of resort owner, Bass Pro Shops founder, philanthropist and conservationist Johnny Morris' refusal to compromise on a vision that venerates his home mountains. Only so deep a passion would have brought about something like Cliffhangers, which pulls no punches and spares no expense in taking golfers on a unique short-course journey.
In a departure from the star-studded lineup of architects who've created Big Cedar's other golf, Cliffhangers' authorship belongs to Morris and his son, John Paul. The course washes over golfers in the space of two and a half hours thanks to wonders like the aforementioned waterfall hole as well as an opening putter-only hole that can start a round with a belly laugh and a multi-terraced 13th green with a pot bunker in the middle. Other putting surfaces are protected and accented by surrealist bunkers and cascading waterfalls, plus a few cart rides through the rapids. One clever choice the Morrises made was using artificial turf tee areas, enabling them to be smaller and placed in precariously exciting spots that would not have let real grass grow well. Beginners and high handicappers will have fun hitting and giggling at the scene, while more serious golfers will appreciate several exacting wedge shots to entertaining greens that, even in their infancy, are already rolling smooth and fast.
At its best moments - the stretch of holes 10 through 14 is fantastic - Cliffhangers reminded me of the gobsmacking Bad Little Nine at PXG founder Bob Parsons' extremely private Scottsdale National Golf Club, a true one-off nine-hole loop of gleefully abusive golf by architects Tim Jackson and David Kahn. Lucky for Big Cedar guests, Cliffhangers provides more grace, with plenty of birdie opportunities and the occasional ace on offer. Instagram-worthy vistas and moments sit around every bend. Rounds will cost $250.
Cliffhangers is a viral video in golf course form.
How Cliffhangers solidifies Big Cedar Lodge's evolution as a golf resort
While owners taking golf course design into their own hands can be risky at best, Morris the Elder and Morris the Younger are something of an exception because over the last decade, they have received as extensive an education in golf design as anyone. They've watched some of the industry's most recognizable names work and rework Big Cedar Lodge from a regional curiosity into a golf destination of national repute before taking a turn at the reins themselves. They clearly paid close attention; Cliffhangers is splendidly executed.
When he acquired the sprawling resort's main golf domain, Johnny Morris had already worked with Jack Nicklaus' to develop the 9-hole Top of the Rock course. In 2013, he added an existing 18-hole Tom Fazio design that would be rechristened Buffalo Ridge Springs. The next step in the property's massive golf expansion came in 2017, when Gary Player laid out Mountain Top, a 13-hole walking par-3 course that plays along high ridges and limestone outcroppings and still boasts the fastest, smoothest putting surfaces on the entire property. A year later, Bill Coore & Ben Crenshaw turned parts of an ill-conceived John Daly project called Murder Rock into Ozarks National, a classically-inspired gem that wanders yet more fingers of land that afford views of 20 or more miles in most directions. Then, in 2020, Tiger Woods came to town, his TGR Design group opening Payne's Valley, a scenic and generously-proportioned 7,400-yard championship test that has been the resort's biggest golf draw ever since, paying homage to the late Payne Stewart, the two-time U.S. Open champion who hailed from nearby Springfield, Missouri. To christen the course, Rory McIlroy, Justin Thomas and Justin Rose joined Tiger for a Golf Channel-broadcast exhibition match that helped put the property on the map for millions of golfers.
The breadth of golf offerings makes ranking the courses at Big Cedar Lodge an entirely personal exercise. I had tons of fun playing Cliffhangers (pro tip: schedule a late tee time to catch a spellbinding sunset while you play), but if I were to pick my favorite of the par-3 courses to play multiple times on a trip, I'd go with Mountain Top because of its walkability and its variety of hole lengths. And while playing Payne's Valley was an engaging experience, Ozarks National's more naturalistic approach sits more squarely on my wavelength as a golf purist. You and your buddies may agree or disagree when you visit, which is just as it should be. Fun post-round debates babble like water over limestone at Big Cedar Lodge.
Comments (1)
You lost me at $250 a round...