Golden Tee PGA TOUR’s 2023-2024 update is imminent (ONLY FIVE DAYS TO GO!), and were back with another round of course insights for the Day One additions to the carousel with Mr. Jim Zielinski, GT Co-Creator of and Course Designer for the Golden Tee series!


       Stay tuned to LIVEWIRE and GT’s social media channels to catch the entire series of Jim Z. 2023-2024 course insights, and be sure to check out our previous entry covering Manhattan View HERE! Now, here's Jim on Missouri Hills!

Jim Z. on Missouri Hills

What about this location drew you to it?

“We’ve done a lot of steep mountain courses in the recent past but I wanted to do a smaller mountain course for 2023-2024. I scouted some areas in the Blue Ridge, and Appalachian areas, but ultimately decided on the Ozark mountains of Southern Missouri. It’s an area we’ve never covered in Golden Tee, and it fit exactly into the kind of course I wanted to create.”

What can GT players expect when they tee off here for the first time?

“What players are going to notice is kind of a throwback to Golden Tee Fore! courses. There are a lot of elevation changes, but not huge ones. There is a lot of water, with many of the greens are protected by it. Many of the skill shots will involve a combination of draws and fades, with elevation changes. This is a very traditional Golden Tee course that I think our players will really enjoy playing.”

What makes this a worthy addition to the GT roster of courses?

“This is a course that can play differently every time you start a round. I think the conditions here will really change the score potential, because it can set up challenging or easy. There are a lot of fun approach shots around trees and cliffs, usually to greens guarded by water, and I think it’s a lot of fun to play.”

What is unique or noteworthy about Missouri Hills?

“We really haven’t offered a hilly, hardwood tree-lined course in a while. We used to do many of these in Golden Tee Fore!, but not as mush with GT LIVE and GT PGA TOUR. There are a lot of ways to create challenging situations with cliffs, hardwood trees, elevation, and water, and that’s what this course does. There are lots of twists and turns with a few narrow fairways added in to make it fun to play.”

What is your favorite hole from this addition to the carousel?

“I think my favorite hole is the Par-5 10th Hole. It is a massive Par-5 along a large lake with a few hills featuring cliff sides that players will have to find their way around. There are multiple eagle shortcuts in between the hills. The key to scoring well here is that the drive has to be precise. A few yards on either side and the path through the hills will become very difficult to manage. I really like this hole because players will have to make quality shots from tee to green in order to make an eagle. They’ll have to earn it.”

Does this course have any similarities to existing GT courses, and did you draw inspiration from them in designing this one?

“This course is kind of a throwback, to the Golden Tee Fore!, and early Golden Tee LIVE days. Courses that it reminds me of, from the Golden Tee LIVE era include: Auburn Glen, Cumberland, and Mystic Hills. And from Golden Tee Fore!: Maple Acres, Stone Valley, and Heartland Creek.”

      Jim Z. makes a strong case for what this course intends to offer GT veterans who've played the game going back to the LIVE and Fore! eras, and for those who have a strong appreciation for traditionally designed GT courses! We can think of more than a few bangers' eyes and ears that'll perk up at the prospect of some classic GT inspiration in the modern era! We’ll be back with more GT 2023-2024 course insights from Mr. Jim Zielinski over the net couple of dat, with an inside look at Bonnie Moor Black tomorrow! Stay tuned, friends!