Missouri is mostly a rural state save for St Louis and Kansas City on the eastern and western borders respectively while the balance is dominated by grassy plains and the deep woods and rolling terrain of the Ozark Mountains in the middle. It's known topically for The Gateway Arch standing sentry over the Mississippi at St Louis to the jazz and barbeque in K.C. It's also the origination points for the Pony Express, Santa Fe Trail, and Oregon Trail and is dissected and bordered by two of the great rivers of the U.S., the Missouri, and the Mississippi.

The best public golf courses in Missouri are gathered around the major population centers of St Louis and Kansas City, many of which are incorporated within residential communities. The Lake of the Ozarks and the Branson resort areas offer a number of resorts anchored around golf courses like Old Kinderhook, Tan Tara Resort, Osage National in the Ozarks, or Ledgestone, Branson Hills and the unique Top of the Rock in Branson. This guide to the best public golf courses in Missouri finds the best possible golf courses and golf resorts in Missouri no matter the destination.