Sinkhole spurs search for cave by Bass Pro Shops founder

In this photo made Thursday, April 14, 2016, Johnny Morris, founder of Bass Pro Shops, points to a massive sinkhole that opened up on his golf course during heavy rain last spring in Ridgedale, Mo. Experts urged Morris to fill the hole with clay and boulders, but he was intrigued by the possibility that an unknown cave system was at the root of the sinkhole which he believes could tie into other caves nearby including one he himself discovered over two decades ago. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) (The Associated Press)

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This photo made Thursday, April 14, 2016, shows a cave discovered in 1993 by Bass Pro Shops founder Johnny Morris in Ridgedale, Mo. Morris believes the cave could be part of a larger unknown system after water from a sinkhole on his golf course about a half-mile away began flowing out the entrance. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) (The Associated Press)

In this photo made Thursday, April 14, 2016, Johnny Morris, founder of Bass Pro Shops, speaks during an interview in Ridgedale, Mo. Instead of panicking when a massive sinkhole swallowed tons of earth at his exquisite golf course deep in the Missouri Ozarks last year, Morris saw an adventure and possibility. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson) (The Associated Press)

RIDGEDALE, Mo. – Instead of panicking, Johnny Morris saw an adventure worth digging into when a massive sinkhole swallowed tons of earth at his exquisite golf course deep in the Missouri Ozarks.

Experts urged the 68-year-old founder of outdoors megastore Bass Pro Shops to fill the 40-foot-deep hole at Top of the Rock Golf Course near Branson with clay and boulders.

But Morris has long been a cave enthusiast — even discovering one with spectacular formations two decades ago — and was intrigued by the possibility that an unknown cave system lay underneath.

So he began to dig, a quest that continues a year later. To the self-made billionaire, unlocking a natural mystery by burrowing further underground is worth it, no matter the cost.