Elite Traveler Spring 2020

A TIGER IN THE OZARKS BIG CEDAR LODGE, RIDGEDALE, MISSOURI, USA This spring, Payne’s Valley — the first public golf course designed by Tiger Woods —will open at Big Cedar Lodge in southern Missouri. Ignoring the fact that Woods’ first two completed courses to date (El Cardonal at Diamante in Los Cabos, Mexico and Bluejack National in Texas) are both private, the open-to-the-public aspect of Payne’s Valley is noteworthy for another important reason. “I grew up on public golf courses,” Woods says. “That’s where I learned how to play, so to be able to design a public golf course is near and dear to my heart.” Like Woods’ two other courses, Payne’s Valley is designed to play firm and fast; it will feature minimal rough and well-kempt wooded areas (to minimize the risk of players losing golf balls); and it will almost never force players to hit shots over water hazards or wetlands. “My favorite golf in the world is links golf, to be able to play it on the ground,” Woods explains. “That’s been taken out of the game at so many of the different golf courses that I play around the world. Everyone is forcing people to play the ball in the air. “I want the ball running, I want it traveling, I want it moving on the ground, and this golf course allows us to do that,” he says. “We have some amazing elevation changes, some amazing slopes, and I think that we can create some interesting options for a lot of players.” bigcedar.com