Buffalo Ridge Springs Golf Course

Buffalo Ridge Springs originally opened as Branson Creek in 1999, a Tom Fazio design on rolling terrain south of Branson. When Johnny Morris acquired the course and folded it into the Big Cedar collection, Fazio returned to redesign the layout in 2014, and the course now feels fully integrated into the resort's identity despite its standalone origins. Golf Digest has ranked it among its Top 100 Public courses, and the playing experience offers a different character than the more rugged ridgeline courses at Payne's Valley and Ozarks National.

You're playing 7,036 yards, par 71. The terrain here is more open and pastoral than the wooded hillsides that define the other Big Cedar courses. The routing moves through rolling grassland with gentle elevation changes, wider fairways, and fewer forced carries over native terrain. Fazio's design philosophy is on display: generous landing areas off the tee, well-shaped bunkers framing the approach zones, and greens that reward precise iron play without harshly penalising marginal misses. Skilled golfers can attack it; higher-handicap players can navigate it without losing a sleeve of balls per nine.

The resident bison herd is not a marketing gimmick. The animals graze alongside several fairways as part of Morris's commitment to the natural landscape, and they're managed to stay clear of playing areas. Their presence at the edges of holes is a visual reminder that this course sits in a working landscape rather than a manicured bubble.