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Forbes
3 hours ago
- Forbes
Stunning New Golf Course At USA Today's Best Golf Resort In America
July 4th is America's birthday, and American golfers are getting a great present this year. For the past several years, Big Cedar Lodge in the beautiful Missouri Ozarks has continued to improve and expand its golf offerings, to the point where for the first time, back in April, USA Today readers voted it the nation's Best Golf Resort for 2025 (as a longtime but not current USA Today contributor I was asked to be one of several panelists on the nominating committee but did not vote in the competition). Just a month later, the crew at Forbes Vetted named Big Cedar the 'Best Golf Resort in the U.S. for Families' and one of the nation's '8 Best Golf Resorts.' But those awards, as impressive as they are, both came when Big Cedar 'only' had five courses. On July 4th weekend it will officially open its sixth and most unique layout, Cliffhangers, which has been 'soft' opened for limited preview play the past few weeks, and I was able to go and see it. Here is your first look at a stunning new golf course at USA Today's best golf resort in America. There are more than 38,000 golf courses on earth, making it extremely hard to do anything in golf course design that has literally never been done before. I have not played every course, but I have been covering golf travel, courses and design in deep detail for over 30 years, and I have played many of the very highest rated ones on every inhabited continent. So, I am pretty sure that the third hole at Cliffhangers is the only one on any course where golfers tee off from inside a cave and hit their tee shot through a waterfall cascading over the mouth of the cave to a green far below. There's a course in Idaho with a movable island green in a lake that changes locations daily, an ocean island hole in Mexico you have to take an amphibious cart to putt out, and a 19th hole in South Africa that requires a helicopter to reach the clifftop tee. Cliffhangers instantly joins this pantheon of crazy, unforgettable, one-of-a-kind golf. Or as Big Cedar Lodge owner Johnny Morris calls it, 'Adventure Golf.' Morris is the founder, owner and CEO of outdoor retail giant Bass Pros Shops (which also owns outdoor retail giant Cabela's) and has been called 'the Walt Disney of retail' for his elaborate, theatrical and sometimes interactive in-store displays, which involve everything from live alligators to fishing boats docked in the water—inside one of the world's largest pyramids. Morris is famous for his vision, for seeing things others do not and then sparing no expense to turn them into reality, and the 4,600-acre Big Cedar Lodge resort is his personal pride and joy. He grew up in this part of the Ozarks, loves it, and want you to love it too, and he has done a tremendous amount of work to make sure that happens. While his other courses have involved the world's most famous designers (more below), Cliffhangers was the work of Morris and his son John Paul, who looked up at the precipitous, rocky, cliffside terrain and thought what no one else would: why not build a golf course there? 'This is golf on the edge—literally,' said Morris. 'We wanted to create something that celebrates the natural wonder of the Ozarks while delivering an unforgettable adventure for every golfer.' John Paul added, 'Cliffhangers reflects everything we love about nature, adventure, and golf. It's wild, fun, and unlike anything in the game of golf today' He is right about that. Golfers traverse steep cart trails and drive through creeks, past waterfalls, and through the signature cave. And Johnny Morris so wants visitors to go home with a hole in one as a memory that he built extra tee boxes on holes one and ten and greens fee include a shot from each so you get 20 bites at the apple. That's because Cliffhangers is a par-3 course, which as traveling golfers know, is all the rage in golf right now. The best resorts, from Pebble Beach to Pinehurst to Bandon Dunes, along with Streamsong, Cabot Citrus Farms, Sand Valley and many others have been rushing to introduce new par-3 courses, but none of those are as memorable as Cliffhangers, which is meant to be super fun for both the most seasoned golfers and those new to the game (though with all the water features it is entirely possible to lose more balls here than on one of the resort's three championship eighteen hole courses—all of which are ranked in the nation's Top 100 You Can Play by Golf Digest). Also, while many of the new short courses popping up across the country are only nine holes (or random ten or twelve), this is 18-20, the full deal. Not your usual golf course cart path. Big Cedar Resort Like most of the current crop of par-3 courses, born from the tradition of pitch and putt layouts, holes are on the shorter side and I got through Cliffhangers hitting northing more than an eight iron. But the visual variety is staggering, with an island green, peninsula holes, huge elevation changes, and exposed rock and water everywhere—it is built into and on top of cliffs, after all. The cave tee box and waterfall combo make three an instant de facto signature hole, but really just about every hole out here could be one. I mean, just look at the pictures. All of this overlooks Payne's Valley, my favorite course at Big Cedar and a drop-dead visual stunner with more lakes, more greens, more waterfalls, and beauty as far as the eye can see. Another person who previewed the course in advance was golf personality Lauren Thompson, host of The Morning Drive on The Golf Channel. She said, 'I've played many great courses around the world, and Cliffhangers is unlike anything I've ever seen. It's breathtakingly beautiful, incredibly challenging, and the best thing to happen to golf in years.' Years. Aerial view of the new Cliffhangers course. Big Cedar Resort The resort is so big that it has an extensive free shuttle system to move guests around, as lodging options include a hotel, lakefront cabins, rental homes, a safari-style glamping resort, and new luxury golf cabins out at the Mountain Top clubhouse by Payne's Valley and Cliffhangers. I rode to dinner in a shuttle with a group of retired bank executives who had been doing an annual golf trip together for 31 years, and had been all over the place, to many regions and golf resorts. They told me they had just played Cliffhangers and one of them confided, 'It was as much fun as any 'real' course I have ever played.' I loved it too, and it is a perfect short 20-holes to get in before tackling one of the bigger courses at Big Cedar, because in addition to getting you in a great mood, it will help dial in your short game, as the fast bentgrass greens are similar in speed to those on the full-sized layouts. Short courses do not need to have grass this good, but Morris does not cut corners, and those playing Cliffhangers even get to stop into the fancy Payne's Valley halfway house during their round, where all the snacks are free, including the signature premium bison hot dogs, from a herd he raises in a nature reserve near Big Cedar. I recommend you try to make a morning tee time at Cliffhangers before a round at Payne's Valley, for a near-perfect day of golf. As good as it is, golfers are not likely to make a trip to Big Cedar just to play the new par-3 layout, but they might be curious how it became the Best Golf Resort in the U.S. So here's the Big Cedar golf overview in a nutshell. The highest rated course in Missouri is Ozarks National, by the legendary design duo of Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw. The second highest rated course in Missouri is Payne's Valley, the 19-hole effort by Tiger Woods. It is the only public eighteen by Woods in the country, and it is fabulous. I think the magazines always favor Coore and Crenshaw designs, but I firmly believe the Woods course is even better. I played it the day it opened in 2019, I have played it since, and wrote this story here at Forbes, 'Tiger Wood's First Public U.S. Golf Course is Awesome.' It is fun, extremely playable, has some great risk/reward holes so it appeals to all caliber players, and it is visually stunning. It is telling that they sell more tee times at Payne's Valley than on any other course. The third highest rated course in Missouri is Buffalo Ridge, a Tom Fazio design that has bison grazing next to its fairways (not the ones that make the hot dogs). All three eighteens are ranked in the Top 100 in the U.S., a feat only a handful of resorts have ever achieved. On top of this, the facilities, service and conditioning are first rate, and the concept of standout Midwestern hospitality is very much evident. Big Cedar also has caddies, forecaddies and extensive practice facilities, including a putting course inspired by the Himalayas in St. Andrews, Scotland and designed by 8-time Major Champion Tom Watson. Then there are two stunning 'regular' par-3 courses, not shortened versions, but all full-length holes, up to 221-yards. The Gary Player designed Mountain Top is a walking-only 13-hole stunner carved through rock formations and rolling terrain. The Jack Nicklaus Signature Top of the Rock 9-holer is the only par-3 course ever used in competition in a PGA Tour sanctioned event, the Bass Pro Shops Legends of Golf, which used to be played here and on Buffalo Ridge. These par-3 courses are so good that you could make a trip to Big Cedar just to play them and Cliffhangers, though I would not pass up the 'big' courses. But as one-shotters go, both Mountain Top and Top of the Rock are as good as anything I have seen on earth. Golf Magazine finally added a ranking of short courses to its more famous Top 100 in the U.S. and Top 100 in the World lists, before Cliffhangers. It ranked the 25 Best Par-3 Courses in the World, but unlike the Top 100, courses were not ranked in order, just the best 25. The vast majority are at the world's top ultra-private clubs, like Augusta National, Pine Valley and the Olympic Club. Less than ten of the world's courses on the list are public, and both Mountain Top and Top of the Rock made the cut. That means until Cliffhangers opens July 4th, every one of the five golf courses at Big Cedar has made the most important 'Best' lists in the industry, and that is no coincidence. In addition to the stunning new golf course, for fishing fans, Big Cedar Lodge sits right on 43,000-acre Table Rock Lake, host of a professional bass tournament and renowned as one of the best fishing spots in the country. Being owned alongside Bass Pro Shops, it is no surprise that Big Cedar has two different state-of-the-art marinas equipped with the newest boats and gear, and it is arguably the best freshwater fishing resort in the country as well, though USA Today does not rate those. Yet.
Rhyl Journal
4 hours ago
- Health
- Rhyl Journal
Ali Oliver highlights importance of keeping children active
Ali Oliver highlights importance of keeping children active (Image: RICHARD LEE PHOTOGRAPHY) This article is brought to you by our exclusive subscriber partnership with our sister title USA Today, and has been written by our American colleagues. It does not necessarily reflect the view of The Herald. Youth Sport Trust CEO Ali Oliver MBE hopes to create awareness of the need for children to be active as she helped to launch National School Sports Week on Monday. Oliver was at Dame Dorothy Primary School in Sunderland for a day packed with sport and activity as they kicked off the campaign which promotes the importance of daily physical activity by encouraging schools, families, and communities to engage in 60 minutes of PE, sport, and play. Pupils were involved in a Girls Active session where leaders from the student body taught sessions to younger years and PE classes using National School Sports Week resources. It marked the start of a week dedicated to bringing attention to the need for children to spend 60 minutes active each day. 'National School Sports Week is an opportunity to shine a light on why it's important children are active and get those important messages across about not just physical health, but social wellbeing in the digital age,' said Oliver. 'Playing together physically is really important for the cognitive benefits, because sadly lots of adults will judge physical education on their own experiences. 'Today's generation is a much more sedentary generation, and it's really important that the school day compensates for some of the time that young people are more sedentary in the rest of their lives.' The annual campaign highlights and aims to change worrying statistics that indicate children are less active than ever. Research shows that fewer than half (47%) of children are meeting the Chief Medical Officers' guidelines of engaging in an average of 60 minutes or more of sport and physical activity daily. In Sunderland, where the week was launched 25% of children in reception are overweight or obese - and over 40% by Year 6. But the Youth Sport Trust are on a mission to change the direction of travel and transform the lives of young people through sport. '[We want] to equip educators and empower young people so together they can create brighter futures through the power of play and sport,' explained Oliver. 'We have a wonderful vision, which is a future where every child enjoys the life-changing benefits of PE and sport. 'We also deliver a number of products and services which schools can use to help them think more creatively, whether it's about how they use their playground, or how they make their maths lessons more active.' National School Sports Week is an annual campaign by the Youth Sport Trust, dedicated to celebrating the power of PE, sport, and play to build brighter futures. This year, powered by Sports Direct x Under Armour, marks the 30th anniversary of the Youth Sport Trust, who is a UK leading children's charity for improving young people's wellbeing through sport and play. Visit
South Wales Guardian
5 hours ago
- Health
- South Wales Guardian
Ali Oliver highlights importance of keeping children active
Ali Oliver highlights importance of keeping children active (Image: RICHARD LEE PHOTOGRAPHY) This article is brought to you by our exclusive subscriber partnership with our sister title USA Today, and has been written by our American colleagues. It does not necessarily reflect the view of The Herald. Youth Sport Trust CEO Ali Oliver MBE hopes to create awareness of the need for children to be active as she helped to launch National School Sports Week on Monday. Oliver was at Dame Dorothy Primary School in Sunderland for a day packed with sport and activity as they kicked off the campaign which promotes the importance of daily physical activity by encouraging schools, families, and communities to engage in 60 minutes of PE, sport, and play. Pupils were involved in a Girls Active session where leaders from the student body taught sessions to younger years and PE classes using National School Sports Week resources. It marked the start of a week dedicated to bringing attention to the need for children to spend 60 minutes active each day. 'National School Sports Week is an opportunity to shine a light on why it's important children are active and get those important messages across about not just physical health, but social wellbeing in the digital age,' said Oliver. 'Playing together physically is really important for the cognitive benefits, because sadly lots of adults will judge physical education on their own experiences. 'Today's generation is a much more sedentary generation, and it's really important that the school day compensates for some of the time that young people are more sedentary in the rest of their lives.' The annual campaign highlights and aims to change worrying statistics that indicate children are less active than ever. Research shows that fewer than half (47%) of children are meeting the Chief Medical Officers' guidelines of engaging in an average of 60 minutes or more of sport and physical activity daily. In Sunderland, where the week was launched 25% of children in reception are overweight or obese - and over 40% by Year 6. But the Youth Sport Trust are on a mission to change the direction of travel and transform the lives of young people through sport. '[We want] to equip educators and empower young people so together they can create brighter futures through the power of play and sport,' explained Oliver. 'We have a wonderful vision, which is a future where every child enjoys the life-changing benefits of PE and sport. 'We also deliver a number of products and services which schools can use to help them think more creatively, whether it's about how they use their playground, or how they make their maths lessons more active.' National School Sports Week is an annual campaign by the Youth Sport Trust, dedicated to celebrating the power of PE, sport, and play to build brighter futures. This year, powered by Sports Direct x Under Armour, marks the 30th anniversary of the Youth Sport Trust, who is a UK leading children's charity for improving young people's wellbeing through sport and play. Visit
Wall Street Journal
5 hours ago
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
Stocks to Watch Friday: Accenture, Kroger, Microsoft, GMS
A Kroger bakery. The supermarket chain's earnings are in the spotlight. (Joshua L. Jones/USA TODAY NETWORK/Imagn Images/Reuters)
Rhyl Journal
5 hours ago
- Politics
- Rhyl Journal
Israel and Iran launch new strikes as new diplomatic effort takes shape
2 This article is brought to you by our exclusive subscriber partnership with our sister title USA Today, and has been written by our American colleagues. It does not necessarily reflect the view of The Herald. Israel and Iran have exchanged strikes a week into their war as Donald Trump considered US military involvement and new diplomatic efforts appeared to be under US president has been weighing whether to attack Iran by striking its well-defended Fordo uranium enrichment facility, which is buried under a mountain and widely considered to be out of reach of all but America's 'bunker-buster' said he will decide within two weeks whether the US military will be directly involved in the war given the 'substantial chance' for renewed negotiations over Tehran's nuclear foreign minister Abbas Araghchi appeared to be heading to Geneva for meetings with the European Union's top diplomat and counterparts from the UK, France and in an interview aired on Friday he said that 'in the current situation, as the Zionist regime's attacks continue, we are not seeking negotiations with anyone'.'I believe that as a result of this resistance (by Iran), we will gradually see countries distancing themselves from the aggression carried out by the regime, and calls for ending this war have already begun, and they will only grow stronger,' he said, adding that Tehran considers 'the Americans to be companions and collaborators of the Zionist regime'.Britain's Foreign Secretary David Lammy said he met US secretary of state Marco Rubio and envoy Steve Witkoff at the White House to discuss the potential for a deal to cool the said it conducted air strikes into Friday morning in Iran with more than 60 aircraft hitting what it said were industrial sites to manufacture also said it hit the headquarters of Iran's Organisation of Defensive Innovation and Research, known by its acronym in Farsi, SPND. The US has linked the agency to alleged Iranian research and testing tied to the possible development of nuclear explosive foreign minister Abbas Araghchi (Hassan Ammar/AP)Israeli air strikes reached into the city of Rasht on the Caspian Sea early on Friday, Iranian media Israeli military had warned the public to flee the area around Rasht's Industrial City, but with Iran's internet shut off to the outside world, it is unclear how many people could see the Israel, paramedic service Magen David Adom said missiles struck a residential area in southern Israel, causing damage to buildings, including one six-storey building. Crews provided medical treatment to five people with minor injuries, it comes a day after at least 80 patients and medical workers were wounded in a strike on the Soroka Medical Centre in the southern Israeli city of defence minister threatened Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei after the Iranian missile crashed into the hospital. Israel's military 'has been instructed and knows that in order to achieve all of its goals, this man absolutely should not continue to exist', said defence minister Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he trusted that Mr Trump would 'do what's best for America'. Speaking from the rubble and shattered glass around the hospital, he added: 'I can tell you that they're already helping a lot.'Smokes rises from the Soroka hospital complex (Leo Correa/AP)The war between Israel and Iran erupted on June 13 with Israeli air strikes targeting nuclear and military sites, senior generals and nuclear scientists. At least 657 people, including 263 civilians, have been killed in Iran and more than 2,000 wounded, according to a Washington-based Iranian human rights has retaliated by firing 450 missiles and 1,000 drones at Israel, according to Israeli army estimates. Most have been shot down by Israel's air defences, but at least 24 people have been killed and hundreds has long maintained its nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes, but it is the only non-nuclear-weapon state to enrich uranium up to 60%, a short technical step away from weapons-grade levels of 90%.Israel is widely believed to be the only Middle Eastern country with a nuclear weapons programme but has never acknowledged Israeli air campaign has targeted Iran's enrichment site at Natanz, centrifuge workshops around Tehran, a nuclear site in Isfahan and what the army assesses to be most of Iran's ballistic missile launchers. The destruction of those launchers has contributed to the steady decline in Iranian attacks since the start of the conflict.
