COURSE PROFILE INTERVIEW: The Oaks Golf Course at Margaritaville Lake Resort, Lake of the Ozarks By Brian Weis

COURSE PROFILE INTERVIEW: The Oaks Golf Course at Margaritaville Lake Resort, Lake of the Ozarks

By Brian Weis

What You Need To Know: The Oaks Golf Course at Margaritaville Lake Resort, Lake of the Ozarks

An Insightful Interview With Paul Leahy, Director Of Golf leahy@pga.com

Whether you have played a course 20+ times a year or looking to play the course for the first time, insights from an insider can help enhance your golf experience. Below is an interview with Paul Leahy who shares some valuable tidbits about the course, memorable holes and must eats and treats at the 19th.

Give Our Readers An Overview of the Golf Course/Property
The course is very scenic as it is carved out of the Ozarks mountains. It is a shot makers course where hitting the long ball is not needed to score well. Small, undulating greens make your approach shots difficult and many uneven lies in the fairways also make it a challenge. Beautiful turf conditions year a round due to our overseeing practices make this a great course to play at any time of year. Beautiful views of the Lake of the Ozarks can be found on the inward nine on holes 13 and 14.

If Someone Was Looking To Golf In The Area, Why Should They Play Your Course?
Exceptional turf conditions year a round and scenic views of the Ozark foothills and the Lake of the Ozarks make this a must play on your visit to the area. You don't have to hit it 300 yards off the tee to enjoy yourself and six sets off tee boxes makes the course playable for everyone.

What Tips or Local Knowledge Would You Provide To Help Them Score Better At Your Course?
Keep the driver in the bag on a lot of holes. Hit the fairway and you will be left with short to mid iron approaches. Miss the fairway and double or worse is in the cards as woods and water dot the landscape outside of the narrow fairways that are carved out of the trees.

Any recent changes to the golf course? Or any upcoming changes?
Over the last several years we have over seeded the course to maintain great turf conditions year a round.

Recent Awards or What You Are Most Proud About The Course?
We have been recognized as the Gateway PGA Section Resort Merchandiser of the Year on several occasions and our golf shop is always well stocked and offer a diverse selection of merchandise.

What Is The Signature, Most Talked About, or Most Photographed Hole?
Our Par 5 ninth hole and our Par 3 14th hole are the most photographed holes. Number 9 is a short Par 5 with the approach shot hitting over a pair of ponds and a water feature. Number 14 is a dramatic Par 3, where the Lake of the Ozarks is the back drop and comes into play if you hit your shot left of the green

What Is Your Favorite Hole? Any Tips to Play It?
My favorite hole is Number 14. This Par three is very beautiful with the Lake of the Ozarks as its backdrop. The only safe place to miss is right of the green and if the pin is the back of the green take one less club as you want to play to the middle of this challenging green.

Must Have Dish or Drink after the round at the 19th Hole?
Margaritas of Course, and Bloody Mary's to start your round.

For the traveling golfer, do you have lodging onsite or partner with any area hotels?
Yes, we have an 800 room Margaritaville Resort 1/2 mile from our course. The resort offers full amenities such as multiple pools with slides for the kids, a marina, Spa, fitness center, Pickle Ball, Indoor water park, Horse back riding, bowling, game room, billiards, a water front restaurant and bar, and several more dinning and beverage outlets. There is something for the whole family here.

Who Holds Course Record and What Was Their Score?
Ron McDougal holds the course record with a score of 65. It was shot during the second round of the 1994 National Club Professional Championship. It was raining that week a lot and it took 3 days to complete the 2nd round when he broke the record.

Back Tee Stats
Par: 71
Yardage: 6461
Slope: 132
Rating: 71.7

More Information
The Oaks Golf Course at Margaritaville Lake Resort, Lake of the Ozarks 1524 State Hwy KK OSAGE BEACH, MO, 65065 573-348-8522

https://www.margaritavilleresortlakeoftheozarks.com/

Revised: 12/19/2024 - Article Viewed 179 Times - View Course Profile

About: Brian Weis

Brian Weis is the Publisher of GolfTrips.com, a network of golf travel and directory sites including GolfWisconsin.com, GolfMichigan.com, ArizonaGolfer.com, GolfAlabama.com, etc. Professionally, Brian is a member of the Golf Writers Association of America (GWAA), International Network of Golf (ING), Golf Travel Writers of America (GTWA), International Golf Travel Writers Association (IGTWA) and The Society of Hickory Golfers (SoHG). In 2016, Brian won The Shaheen Cup, an award given to a golf travel writer by his peers.

All of his life, Brian has been around the game of golf. As a youngster, Brian competed at all levels in junior and high school golf. Brian had a zero chance for a college golf scholarship, so he worked on the grounds crew at West Bend Country Club to pay for his University of Wisconsin education. In his adult years, his passion for the game collided with his entrepreneurial spirit and in 2004 launched GolfWisconsin.com. In 2007, the idea for a network of local golf directory sites formed and GolfTrips.com was born. Today, the network consists of a site in all 50 states supported by national sites like GolfTrips.com, GolfGuide.com and GolfPackages.com. It is an understatement to say, Brian is passionate about promoting golf and golf travel on a local, regional, national and international level.

On the golf course, Brian is known as a fierce weekend warrior that fluctuates between a 5-9 handicap. With a soft fade, known as "The Weis Slice", and booming 300+ drives, he can blast it out of bounds with the best of them.