Just weeks after he bought one of the two 18-hole golf courses The Communities at Branson Creek, Johnny Morris has bought the other. In late October, the billionaire owner of the Bass Pro Shops chain purchased Murder Rock Golf & Country Club in greater Branson, Missouri. Now he’s followed up by acquiring the community’s Tom Fazio-designed Branson Creek layout, which spent more than a decade (2000 to 2011) atop Golf Digest’s list of the top public courses in the state. Morris intends to operate the courses as amenities for his nearby Big Cedar Lodge, which features a nine-hole, Jack Nicklaus “signature” course.
All three of Morris’ courses are currently closed for renovations. A press release from Big Cedar Lodge promises that Branson Creek will reopen in the late spring of next year, but the others appear to be closed indefinitely. The Top of the Rock course at the lodge has been shuttered since 2010, if not before.