Golf Getaway at Lake of the Ozarks

Last time my wife, Julie, and I visited Lake of the Ozarks, I had such a good time playing the golf course at Old Kinderhook Golf Club in Camdenton, Missouri. I played the first half of the course by myself, but later was invited by the duo ahead of me to join them. I thoroughly enjoyed the golf and chatting with my new friends, Jason and Steve. It reminded me of how much fun I have playing golf with my brothers-in-law. I realized golf really is a social game, and thought how nice it would be to invite some family and/or friends to the Lake area for a golf getaway.  At the same time, Julie and I were beginning to pick our next vacation destination that was to include her sisters and their husbands who live in Wisconsin.   

When picking a vacation destination, Julie and I usually want to go to a new place we have never been before. However, sometimes a destination is so fun, so interesting, and so memorable, we may choose to return numerous times. Lake of the Ozarks in mid-Missouri is one of those places. When it came time to plan our vacation with Julie’s sisters and their husbands and with me wanting to plan a golf getaway, Lake of the Ozarks was a natural choice. 

We chose the month of May for this golf getaway/family vacation, aka the “family affair,” that would take place at the Lake of the Ozarks. There was a lot of back and forth with dates, but with sheer determination to make it work, we pulled it off. We coordinated schedules, made plans, and all headed to the Lake of the Ozarks to play golf and enjoy the other great activities in the area.

For three of our couples, we booked a fabulous vacation home located at the Tan-Tar-A Estates, adjacent to the Margaritaville Lake Resort, in Osage Beach. The fourth couple chose to experience the amazing accommodations and amenities at the beautiful Margaritaville Lake Resort, which was just a few minutes away from the Tan-Tar-A Estates.  

Our spacious lakeside vacation home rental, managed by Lake Days Rentals, was a beautifully furnished and comfortable three-bedroom, three bath house.  With its open concept, it was the perfect place for the eight of us to hang out together, cook meals together, or to just relax. 

The extensive deck on the lake side of the house had a large outdoor dining table with chairs, a propane grill, and, of course, a wonderful view of Lake of the Ozarks. Laundry facilities and the kitchen stocked with dishes, pots and other basic essentials, definitely came in handy. We also had televisions in the living room and each bedroom, but I don’t know of anyone that watched any TV – there were too many other fun things to do. 

Golfing Lake of the Ozarks

The Lake of the Ozarks Golf Trail features 12 incredible courses, but for this trip we had to narrow it down to three. During my last visit to the Lake, I had the privilege of playing the remarkable course at Old Kinderhook.

I remember I especially enjoyed Kinderhook’s short 152-yard hole 7. With no fairway, when you hit from the tee you better get on the green – or else! I managed to hit the far, right side of the green on my tee shot and rolled to the apron just off the green. Two poor chips and three putts later, I was in the hole.

I also enjoyed the challenging 18th hole, with a large water hazard along the left of the fairway and on both sides of the green. I remember losing two balls on this hole, and stopped counting strokes once I reached ten. Despite playing my normal spotty game, I thoroughly enjoyed the course. 

I would have loved to play Old Kinderhook again. However, for this trip I wanted to try a few more of the area courses. After looking over the Golf Trail’s website, we decided to go with The Oaks at Margaritaville, the Golf Club at Deer Chase and Osage National Golf Resort.

Day 1

Since we only had a few days at the Lake and wanted to play as much golf as we could, we had scheduled a 2:07 p.m. tee time at The Oaks at Margaritaville Lake Resort the same afternoon we got to the Lake because it was only five minutes from our vacation rental home. Shortly after arriving at our rental home, we unpacked our cars and Steve and Roger threw their golf clubs in the back of my SUV along with mine. Looking at my clubs, I realized, somehow, I had left my 2 and 3 irons in Texas. Not that it would likely affect my game, but at least now I had an excuse if I played poorly!

When we arrived at The Oaks, we checked into the pro shop, loaded up with some waters and ice, and secured our clubs onto our carts. As we were loading our carts, we read on the scorecard this tree-lined course had 60 bunkers and water hazards among the hilly landscape. We knew then that this would be an especially challenging course.

While we were making our way to the first tee, a group of about twelve young golfers were getting instructions and hitting balls on the range. Something told me that I probably should have joined the class for a few pointers before they let me out on the course. Since Steve and Roger know I never go anywhere without my camera, they took turns being my “designated golf cart driver” on the course – not because I was drinking – but so I could take some pictures and videos as we drove from hole to hole along the cart path.

Despite my golf game on the day, we enjoyed The Oaks immensely and there were many highlights. Hole number 13 was one of our favorites on the course. Talk about an incredible view! Immediately after the tee was a water hazard, an uphill tree-lined fairway, and a dogleg to the right. One of us did hit into the water (I’m not naming names!), but the other two managed to clear the water off the tee. This was just one of the many picturesque and challenging holes at The Oaks.

 After our round, we were tired and really hungry. Luckily for us, the family members not playing golf made a trip to get groceries for dinner and for the rest of the week. Salads, fruits, veggies, and chips were nicely arranged on the counter for grazing. Roger volunteered for grill duty, and fired up some great burgers and brats, and we all enjoyed eating, drinking, and catching up.

Day 2

The next morning, we had an early 7:30 tee time at The Golf Club at Deer Chase. A beautiful 20-minute drive through rolling hills brought us to this course in rural Linn Creek. Being from very flat terrain in my area of Texas, I certainly appreciated the hilly landscape. Deer Chase is tucked away in the Auglaize River Valley and we were impressed by the numerous lakes and green hills, making the course both scenic and challenging. Well-manicured fairways and greens reflected caring maintenance of the course.

With all the trees and water hazards on the course, we all lost a few balls this fine spring morning. Luckily, we had plenty of extras, and enjoyed the challenges of Deer Chase. We kept score, but did throw in a few Mulligans here and there. I didn’t come close to reaching my goal of breaking 100, but I did get my one par for the day. Roger and Steve fared better than I did and were good sports about it, and both said they really enjoyed playing this beautiful course. 

After golfing at Deer Chase, we met up with the rest of our group at nearby Seven Springs Winery. We were comfortable in the gazebo on the back terrace, sitting in the cool shade with views of fountains, vineyards and forests. Although secluded among the trees and hills, the winery is only about a ten-minute drive from the Lake of the Ozarks communities of Camdenton and Osage Beach. 

As we were finishing our delicious lunch and wine at Seven Springs, Carolyn pointed out that having lunch in the gazebo all together with the spectacular scenery all around was a really special treat. With our bellies full and smiles on our faces, we drove over to take a tour of the fascinating Bridal Cave.

Julie and I had been to Bridal Cave before and were confident the others would enjoy a visit to this amazing natural wonder created over millions of years of geologic activity. Named for the thousands of weddings that have been held inside the cave and on the beautiful grounds, Bridal Cave is the longest continual running attraction at the Lake of the Ozarks. The one-hour group tour was just right for us. One of the highlights of the tour was the brilliant blue “mystery lake” that we viewed from a platform within the cave. Our guide was great and very informative, describing the history of the cave and providing lots of fascinating information on the various rock formations.

There are several low ceilings and narrow openings on the path that must be maneuvered on the tour. As our guide reminded up many times, “Watch Your Head” to avoid bumps and bruises. With constant attention and care, it is very safe, but do be careful. Also, be aware that the temperature is around 60 degrees year around in the cave, so my advice is to dress appropriately. We really enjoyed our visit to the fun and fascinating Bridal Cave near Camdenton.

After our tour, we headed back to our rental home and everyone showered and cleaned up so we could all get together for another family-favorite activity – eating!

We loved cooking and eating at our lake house, but we also enjoyed dining at some wonderful restaurants at the Lake. For fine casual dining, Baxter’s Lakeside Grille hit the mark. Julie had the delicious fresh Alaskan halibut seasoned with Cajun spices and grilled to perfection, finished with a fire-roasted poblano cream sauce, and served with chorizo risotto and grilled zucchini. I opted for the amazing Almond-Encrusted Chilean seabass. Baxter’s also has a panoramic view of the Lake of the Ozarks that is just as impressive as their food.

Day 3

Our final golf outing was another early tee time Wednesday morning at Osage National Golf Resort. As soon as we saw the fabulous clubhouse on top of the hill with towering views over the resort, we knew we were in for a treat. Steve commented that any time a course has “National” in its name, you know it’s a good one. And he was right. 

Once we arrived at the clubhouse, we each took a couple minutes to take in the sweeping views of the course, swimming pools, and surrounding landscape framed by the bluffs of the Osage River Valley. I did my homework beforehand and read that Osage National Golf Resort is one of the premier golf courses in Missouri. This fantastic resort has three nine-hole courses, with two of them designed by Arnold Palmer. Rain threatened part of the morning, but we managed to play the Mountain and the Links courses without any delays. 

On the Mountain Course, many of the tees are elevated with majestic views of the river basin. I loved the Par 4 Hole 6, 308 yards from the Member’s tee. With a dogleg to the left, the approach to the green was difficult with a water hazard to the right and sand traps bordering the entire back and left of the green. Just beyond the green and hazards, we saw several beautiful homes overlooking the course. 

We had a blast playing the Mountain and the Links courses at Osage National and we’re already talking about returning to play the last tract – the River Course.

The delightful ladies at the Eagle View Bar & Grill in the clubhouse told us they had a golfer’s special for lunch, which we took advantage of because we were pressed for time. The juicy cheeseburgers and ice-cold beer – I had a Yuengling – really hit the spot. Steve and Roger commented on how friendly and attentive all of the staff were at Osage National, as well as the other two courses that we had played. 

After lunch at Osage National, we loaded back into the car and headed to the Lake of the Ozarks State Park Marina at Grand Glaize Beach, where visitors can rent boats, kayaks, canoes, paddleboards and shop at the small general store.  It is here where we met up with the rest of our group. We were all ready for our next adventure – a leisurely afternoon of cruising the Lake on a pontoon boat.  For sure, it was one of the highlights of our trip.  

We headed back to our vacation home to chill out and relax for a little while before making dinner. After burgers and brats on Monday, we ended up grilling chicken and veggies for dinner on Wednesday.  We had everything we needed, and loved the relaxing atmosphere for family time, eating, talking, and laughing together. Our group spread out on the spacious lakeview deck and dining room, sharing old memories and making new ones. 

Day 4

Sooner than we would have liked, our time at the Lake of the Ozarks came to a close. After packing up and checking out of our “home away from home,” we had one more stop we wanted to make. Before our trip ended and we climbed back into our cars, some of us really wanted to get out and take a hike, especially since we all had a long drive ahead of us. With two state parks and dozens of hiking trails, the Lake area has a wide variety to choose from. Julie, Lisa, Roger, and I hiked the fun 2.2-mile Rocky Top Trail in Lake of the Ozarks State Park. While out on the trail, we saw deer, flying eagles, a turtle and several ground squirrels. The whole area was a brilliant blanket of green, with pops of purple and yellow wildflowers. At one point on the trail, we found ourselves high atop dolomite cliffs with a spectacular view overlooking the Lake of the Ozarks. It was a fantastic bookend to our trip.

The Lake of the Ozarks is a Hole-in-One!

Truth be told, while I was writing this story, Julie and I wished we were packing our bags again to head back to the fabulous Lake of the Ozarks. Do yourself and your family a favor, and plan for your visit to Lake of the Ozarks. They will thank you for one of the best vacations ever.

Story by Scott Kendall