Golf in the State of Missouri
Show me Missouri and I will show you a state located in the Midwest that shares borders with Arkansas, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Tennessee. It is blessed with 324 golf courses, mainly in or near the metropolitan areas of St. Louis with 78, Kansas City, home of the Gateway Arch with 50, Springfield 25, Jefferson City 12, Columbia 10, and Joplin and Hannibal with 7 apiece. Anheuser-Busch products are produced in Missouri and no doubt enjoyed on every 19th-hole.
The 18-hole championship Buffalo Ridge Golf Club, Hollister has been recently redesigned by Tom Fazio and Johnny Morris and features a diversity of natural settings, including creeks, lakes, waterfalls, caves, rock formations, and natural grasses. Heritage Hills Golf Course, Moberly is an 18-hole public course featuring 4 sets of tees to cater to all levels of play. The highly ranked Stone Canyon Golf Club, Blue Springs, an 18-hole course designed by Greg Norman, treats golfers to views of Kansas City. The recently renovated 18-hole Cape Jaycee Municipal Golf Course, Cape Girardeau, is open year-round for golfing enjoyment.
Pros from Missouri include Tom Watson, born in Kansas City and now residing in Overland Park, who is regarded as one of golf’s greatest; Payne Stewart, born in Springfield, who was known both for winning tournaments and for his flashy wardrobe; Hale Irwin, from Joplin, who is a multi-winner of the US Open; Judy Rankin, born on St. Louis who has won 26 LPGA events and is now a TV broadcaster, and Stan Utley, born in Thayer, who in 2002 set a PGA record for the fewest putts in nine holes at 6!