Staley Farms

Payne’s Valley – Sneak Preview by M. James Ward In the final week in October, during a media visit, I was able to tour the planned Payne's Valley 18-hole course. The design by Tiger Woods and Johnny Morris will be the first totally accessible to the public. The layout is planned to open in 2020, joining other golf course offerings at Big Cedar Lodge, located near Branson, Missouri. The Payne’s Valley course will feature the following distances from the championship tees: Payne’s Valley Back Tees #1 – 483 Yards – Par 4 #2 – 266 Yards – Par 3 #3 – 332 Yards – Par 4 #4 – 533 Yards – Par 5 #5 – 186 Yards – Par 3 #6 – 442 Yards – Par 4 #7 – 366 Yards – Par 4 #8 – 570 Yards – Par 5 #9 – 430 Yards – Par 4 #10 – 185 Yards – Par 3 #11 – 437 Yards – Par 4 #12 – 341 Yards – Par 4 #13 – 651 Yards – Par 5 #14 – 422 Yards – Par 4 #15 – 457 Yards – Par 4 #16 – 227 Yards – Par 3 #17 – 487 Yards – Par 4 #18 – 560 Yards – Par 5 TOTAL – 7375 Yards – Par 72 #19 – 100 yards – Par 3 The course is named in honor of Payne Stewart. The Missouri native grew up in nearby Springfield and was a three-time major champion. Tragically, Stewart lost his life in a plane accident that happened just over 20 years ago. The tour of the property took place over much of the front nine, which is nearly finished in terms of course preparation. Grass for the tees and fairways will be zoysia with bent grass on the greens. The property for the course is truly expansive and is located just below the main clubhouse building. Needless to say, the views of the course from the clubhouse are truly an eyeful with the Ozarks in plain site. There are also plans to construct a mega-sized practice area located near the clubhouse and providing a downhill launch pad with a number of practice targets provided. Also being built is a 19th "betting hole" which has become a staple for other facilities to provide. The hole will be located near the 18th green. The opening hole is a very strong long par-4—descending abruptly downhill and showcasing the finely manicured turf. Payne's Valley will include 85 acres of fairway which is truly enormous. The recently opened Ozarks National has 70. Big Cedar Lodge - Payne's Valley course 1st hole The course shows Tiger’s approach to golf design in having extremely wide fairways. I hesitate to say the course is akin to Augusta National but it clearly shows a desire to provide width in the driving areas with enormous putting surfaces featuring a range of internal contours. Big Cedar Lodge - Payne's Valley course 2nd hole The 2nd hole descends downhill as well but this time in the opposite direction. Listed at 266 yards the hole will play a bit shorter because of the elevation drop and often with the prevailing wind from the southwest assisting. The routing for the remainder of the front nine follows an east/west, west/east direction. The short par-4 3rd provides an opportunity for stronger players to attempt a bold play from the tee. The par-5 4th is clearly reachable for strong players and features a fairway area as you near the green that is nearly a football field wide. Big Cedar Lodge - Payne's Valley course 3rd hole The par-3 5th plays to an island green and at Tiger's insistence a back teeing area was included. Big Cedar Lodge - Payne's Valley course 5th hole The final four holes on the outward side are a mixed bag and clearly meant to include a range of club selections. The final hole we could see is the par-3 10th which plays from an elevated teeing area to a green that's very well defended with various bunkers. The inward side could only be viewed from a distance. The course superintendent pointed out where the holes go and how they provide a varying level of challenges with the planned 651-yard 13th truly being a test. Initially, the 17th and 18th holes were to be a par-5 and par-4 sequence. That has now been flipped with the par-5 18th being a last opportunity for heroic play. Big Cedar Lodge - Payne's Valley course 18th and 19th hole The key unanswered question is how the strategic elements will be brought to fruition. All will need to wait on that until the course opens in 2020. All photos courtesy of Evan Schiller

Koepka wins 100th PGA for second major in 2018 by M. James Ward ST. LOUIS, MO. Missouri is known as the "show me" State and Brooks Koepka, the man who successfully defended his US Open title this past June at Shinnecock Hills, followed up with a vintage performance in winning the 100th PGA Championship at Bellerive Country Club in St. Louis and showed the golfing world he is primed to add even more key events in the years ahead. The 28-year-old was chased throughout the final round by a horde of golfers, most notably Tiger Woods who shot a final round 64, finishing second two shots back in his best performance in a major event since returning to action this year from surgery. How good was Koepka's performance? Consider his 72-hole score of 264 becomes the lowest in PGA Championship history. In addition, the Floridian joins an elite grouping of four other players who have won both the US Open and PGA Championship in the same year. Ironically, the last golfer to do so was Woods. The win at Bellerive marks his 3rd major victory – the other two coming at the US Open in 2017 and 2018. After a shaky first six holes Koepka righted the ship by closing out the front side with three consecutive birdies. The inward half provided top tier golfing theater as a host of players – including defending champion Justin Thomas and Belgium's Thomas Pieters – attempted to enter the mix. Only Woods and Australian Adam Scott remained in the hunt during the final few holes. Woods, who has never won a major when trailing after 54 holes, recorded his best score on the back nine during the event with a stellar three-under-par 32. Tiger was looking for his first major in ten plus year and his first PGA TOUR win in over five years. On the back nine Woods stiffed a 9-iron approach at the 15th for a kick-in birdie getting to within two shots of the lead. At the long par-3 16th his 4-iron found the putting surface with just 20 feet to negotiate for birdie. The putt failed and after Woods blocked his tee shot right into the water hazard at the par-5 17th he fought back gamely with a 5-iron approach and ten feet for birdie. Again, his putter failed to produce. At the final hole Woods ended the day in solid fashion, holing an 18-foot putt for a final round 64 – the lowest final round Tiger has ever shot in a major championship. The poise Koepka displayed when winning at Shinnecock was in ample evidence during the final round. With the crowds pulling for Tiger to win and with Scott making a back nine move which eventually had him tie for the lead after the 13th hole, it was Koepka who answered the call in a big time way with a towering drive followed by a quality wedge to the 15th hole. Koepka sunk the 10-foot putt to secure the lead he would never relinquish. At the par-3 16th, Koepka hit the shot that clinched the event – a laser-like 4-iron that settled no more than 7 feet away on the 248-yard par-3 hole. Once again, Koepka displayed total focus draining the putt and pushing the lead to two. At the par-5 17th he missed a short birdie putt and when Scott failed to birdie from 7 feet away the lead was two with just one to play. Koepka blistered a tee shot at the par-4 18th to no more than 110 yards away. He calmly played his pitch to the green and two-putt from 18 feet to nail down the victory. It is hard to conceive Koepka has won three of the last six majors he has played – missing the 2018 Master because of injury. However, his total wins on the PGA TOUR is a meager one title – claiming the 2015 Waste Management Phoenix Open. At Shinnecock, Koepka had to play the bulk of his round after Tommy Fleetwood had posted a final round 63 and leaving him little margin for error. During the final nine holes on the Long Island layout Koepka repeatedly rose to the occasion with par saving putts and a superb wedge leading to birdie at the par-5 16th nailing down the win. At Bellerive, Koepka had to beat back the massive gallery pulling for Woods. The resolve and determination Koepka displayed was nothing short of impressive given how the likes of other golf stars have faded when Woods has been pushing hard for victory. Koepka's ripped physique and deft touch around the greens shows how professional golf at the highest of levels is now the domain of the athletic golfer. Where many had questioned Koepka's initial major triumph at Erin Hills claiming it was faulty course set-up that produced the win. There's no question now that the name Brooks Koepka is a player fully capable in handling just about any situation that comes his way. His win at Bellerive in overcoming Woods, Scott and all the rest was simply brilliant. At Bellerive, Koepka clearly laid down the gauntlet – if he's in the hunt during major events then all other competitors should be ready to raise their games to an even higher level. Brooks "show me" Koepka is now a powerful locomotive barreling down the tracks. It's either keep up or get run over.

Koepka win 100th PGA for second major in 2018 by M. James Ward ST. LOUIS, MO. Missouri is known as the "show me" State and Brooks Koepka, the man who successfully defended his US Open title this past June at Shinnecock Hills, followed up with a vintage performance in winning the 100th PGA Championship at Bellerive Country Club in St. Louis and showed the golfing world he is primed to add even more key events in the years ahead. The 28-year-old was chased throughout the final round by a horde of golfers, most notably Tiger Woods who shot a final round 64, finishing second two shots back in his best performance in a major event since returning to action this year from surgery. How good was Koepka's performance? Consider his 72-hole score of 264 becomes the lowest in PGA Championship history. In addition, the Floridian joins an elite grouping of four other players who have won both the US Open and PGA Championship in the same year. Ironically, the last golfer to do so was Woods. The win at Bellerive marks his 3rd major victory – the other two coming at the US Open in 2017 and 2018. After a shaky first six holes Koepka righted the ship by closing out the front side with three consecutive birdies. The inward half provided top tier golfing theater as a host of players – including defending champion Justin Thomas and Belgium's Thomas Pieters – attempted to enter the mix. Only Woods and Australian Adam Scott remained in the hunt during the final few holes. Woods, who has never won a major when trailing after 54 holes, recorded his best score on the back nine during the event with a stellar three-under-par 32. Tiger was looking for his first major in ten plus year and his first PGA TOUR win in over five years. On the back nine Woods stiffed a 9-iron approach at the 15th for a kick-in birdie getting to within two shots of the lead. At the long par-3 16th his 4-iron found the putting surface with just 20 feet to negotiate for birdie. The putt failed and after Woods blocked his tee shot right into the water hazard at the par-5 17th he fought back gamely with a 5-iron approach and ten feet for birdie. Again, his putter failed to produce. At the final hole Woods ended the day in solid fashion, holing an 18-foot putt for a final round 64 – the lowest final round Tiger has ever shot in a major championship. The poise Koepka displayed when winning at Shinnecock was in ample evidence during the final round. With the crowds pulling for Tiger to win and with Scott making a back nine move which eventually had him tie for the lead after the 13th hole, it was Koepka who answered the call in a big time way with a towering drive followed by a quality wedge to the 15th hole. Koepka sunk the 10-foot putt to secure the lead he would never relinquish. At the par-3 16th, Koepka hit the shot that clinched the event – a laser-like 4-iron that settled no more than 7 feet away on the 248-yard par-3 hole. Once again, Koepka displayed total focus draining the putt and pushing the lead to two. At the par-5 17th he missed a short birdie putt and when Scott failed to birdie from 7 feet away the lead was two with just one to play. Koepka blistered a tee shot at the par-4 18th to no more than 110 yards away. He calmly played his pitch to the green and two-putt from 18 feet to nail down the victory. It is hard to conceive Koepka has won three of the last six majors he has played – missing the 2018 Master because of injury. However, his total wins on the PGA TOUR is a meager one title – claiming the 2015 Waste Management Phoenix Open. At Shinnecock, Koepka had to play the bulk of his round after Tommy Fleetwood had posted a final round 63 and leaving him little margin for error. During the final nine holes on the Long Island layout Koepka repeatedly rose to the occasion with par saving putts and a superb wedge leading to birdie at the par-5 16th nailing down the win. At Bellerive, Koepka had to beat back the massive gallery pulling for Woods. The resolve and determination Koepka displayed was nothing short of impressive given how the likes of other golf stars have faded when Woods has been pushing hard for victory. Koepka's ripped physique and deft touch around the greens shows how professional golf at the highest of levels is now the domain of the athletic golfer. Where many had questioned Koepka's initial major triumph at Erin Hills claiming it was faulty course set-up that produced the win. There's no question now that the name Brooks Koepka is a player fully capable in handling just about any situation that comes his way. His win at Bellerive in overcoming Woods, Scott and all the rest was simply brilliant. At Bellerive, Koepka clearly laid down the gauntlet – if he's in the hunt during major events then all other competitors should be ready to raise their games to an even higher level. Brooks "show me" Koepka is now a powerful locomotive barreling down the tracks. It's either keep up or get run over.