LedgeStone Championship Golf Course near Branson, Missouri

Ledgestone Golf Course unfolds inside the ritzy Stonebridge Village, just outside Branson, Mo., high in the Ozarks.

It is an excellent course, consistently ranked among the best in the state by golf magazines.

The course was designed by Tom Clark, who's done such courses as the TPC Potomac at Avenel Falls in Maryland and the Woods Course at Kingsmill Resort & Spa in Virginia.

At LedgeStone, Clark let the surroundings showcase the course; it climbs up and down the steep terrain, with some serious elevation changes.

It's very well conditioned, with zoysia fairways and bentgrass greens, and clear, little mountain streams run along many of the fairways. Small waterfalls and bridges take you over lakes and ponds, and elegant landscaping augments the aesthetics: orange butterflies hovering over purple flowers.