Tiger's First Public Design: Payne's Valley at Big Cedar Lodge

In the Ozark Mountains of southwest Missouri, not far from where Payne Stewart grew up, sits the first public golf course Tiger Woods ever designed. Payne's Valley opened at Big Cedar Lodge in 2020 as a tribute to the three-time major champion. It also doesn't stop at 18 holes. A bonus par-3 19th, set beneath a limestone wall and cascading waterfalls, gives the round a finish unlike any other in public golf.

Fast Facts

Year Opened: 2020
Accessibility: Public (Resort)
Architect: Tiger Woods (TGR Design)
Par: 72
Yardage: 7,370

A Tribute to Payne Stewart

Payne's Valley came together as a partnership between Johnny Morris, the Bass Pro Shops founder who built Big Cedar Lodge, Tiger Woods and the Stewart family. The course is named for Payne Stewart, a Springfield native who won the 1989 PGA Championship and U.S. Opens in 1991 and 1999 before his death later that year. For Woods, the project was a milestone of its own. "Payne's Valley is the first public golf course that I have designed," he said ahead of its opening.

Woods' design firm, TGR Design, worked with senior design consultant Beau Welling to route the course through the Ozarks. The result is a layout that moves through valleys, along limestone bluffs and past natural water features, with views of the surrounding mountains along the way.

Built for Every Golfer

Woods designed Payne's Valley to be enjoyed by golfers of every level. The course has more than 85 acres of fairway, with landing areas close to 100 yards wide in places. The large, open-fronted greens are surrounded by tightly mown runoffs, so golfers can bump and run or putt from well off the surface. Meyer zoysia fairways and bentgrass greens keep the ground game in play all day.

The scenery grows as the round goes on. The par-3 5th plays over a lake to a peninsula green. A natural limestone formation lines the 7th fairway. The par-3 10th features a heart-shaped green with a creek and waterfalls behind it. The 18th then turns golfers toward the course's centerpiece.

The 19th Hole: The Big Rock

The bonus hole was designed by Johnny Morris himself. It's a short par-3 to an island green at the base of The Big Rock, a towering limestone wall with waterfalls pouring down its face. It doesn't count toward par. Its purpose is simpler: settling bets after the round.

The hole proved its worth at the course's grand opening. On September 22, 2020, Woods and Justin Thomas faced Rory McIlroy and Justin Rose in the Payne's Valley Cup, with proceeds going to the Payne Stewart Family Foundation. The match finished tied 2-2, so it came down to closest to the pin on the 19th. Thomas hit his tee shot to 8 feet, 7 inches to win it for the American side.

Now Playable in GOLF+

Golfers no longer need a trip to the Ozarks to play Payne's Valley. The course is now available in GOLF+. Golfers can play the wide fairways, the peninsula green on 5 and the heart-shaped green on 10, then finish at the island green beneath The Big Rock.

Payne's Valley is the first of five Big Cedar Lodge courses coming to GOLF+. Over the next few weeks, four more will follow:

• Buffalo Ridge, Tom Fazio's design and the resort's original course
• Ozarks National, by Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw
• Top of the Rock, Jack Nicklaus' par-3 course overlooking Table Rock Lake
• Cliffhangers, an 18-hole par-3 course carved into the limestone cliffs, designed by Johnny Morris and his son JP