Mystic Creek Golf Club

El Dorado, Arkansas is not a town you’re likely to come across out of the blue. During the 1920s, El Dorado was at the heart of the oil boom in south Arkansas and became known as “Arkansas’s Original Boomtown.” On Jan. 10, 1921, the Busey No. 1 well was completed about a mile west of town which led to an explosion in population and prosperity. If you find yourself in town with a few hours to kill, take a self-guided tour of El Dorado’s downtown – which was voted America’s Best Downtown in 2009 – and you will see all of the beautifully renovated 1930s style buildings, many of which are on the National Register. The Union County Courthouse which was built in 1928 and lays testament to this.

El Dorado is the corporate home of Murphy USA; if you’ve ever purchased gas at a Walmart, odds are you’ve done business with them. The company has invested heavily in the community including the Murphy Arts District and the award-winning Historic downtown area.

El Dorado is also home to one of the nicest golf courses in the state and not surprisingly, it is owned by Murphy USA. Mystic Creek Golf Club opened in May of 2013 and was carved into the rolling timberlands that surround the town. The course was designed by Ken Dye who, oddly enough, is no relation to Pete. Ground was broken in 2001 and, after a series of misadventures, was finally completed in 2012. As you make your way around the course you’ll find tall cathedral pines as you’d find at several courses around Augusta, high flashing bunkers styles similar to those on an A.W Tillinghast layout, and domed greens with runoffs similar to Pinehurst #2. Tee boxes, fairways, and greens grassed in Champion Bermuda are as beautiful to look at as they are fun to play on.

Mystic Creek is a semi-private golf course and although many players will tell you it’s a tough course, it provides an unforgettable experience for golfers of all skill levels as long as you play from the tees that best suit your game. Memberships are available as are homes and homesites within the Mystic Creek community.

Mystic Creek is not without its fair share of accolades: GolfWeek Magazine has put it at the top of its "Best You Can Play List," and was recognized as one of the 'Best New Courses' by Golf Digest shortly after opening. They’ve also played host annually to the Symetra Tour’s “El Dorado Shootout” and several NCAA Golf Championships. Mystic Creek is managed by Honours Golf, a division of Troon, so you know it’s always going to be in prime condition. Mystic Creek is a stunning piece of property and features wide-open fairways, spectacular bunkering around the greens, and greens PGA TOUR players would be proud to play on.

Memorable Holes

Member’s Favorite: Number 14, Par 5, 493 yards. This is both the most challenging and most photographed hole on the golf course. The left side is framed by a creek and native grasses while a group of fairway bunkers catches any errant shots hit down the right. With the tees forward and a good drive, the green can be reached in two. A more conservative play is to play your second shot short of the greenside bunker on the left and leave yourself a short pitch shot into the green. That’s where things get interesting. The green is small and severely sloped from left to right. A pin located on the back shelf can be especially tricky and if you find the deep greenside bunkers, par can be tough. When the rough is cut down, it’s not uncommon for balls to roll off the green and come to rest near the creek at the bottom of the hill. Take a par and run!

Assistant Pro Casey Wroot’s Favorite Hole: Number 4: Par 3, 172 yards. For a guy that can hit the ball a long way, it’s interesting that Casey’s favorite is a par 3. Although it’s the second-longest par 3 on the layout, it plays downhill and slightly shorter. Water surrounds the left and backside of the green and there are bunkers left side, front and back right. The ridge that divides the green is similar to the 16th hole at Augusta without the slope.

My Favorite Hole: Number 18: Par 5, 489 yards. A well-played drive down the left-center of the fairway will present you with a choice to either layup to the right side of the severely sloped fairway or go for the green in two. There’s a strand of pine trees on the right and a fairway bunker left that catches anything pulled. If you choose to go for it, you’ll need to avoid several bunkers and collection areas that guard the green. There are three distinct tiers to the green, so you’ll need a good approach shot to have a chance at birdie or better.

Most Challenging Hole: Number 3, Par 4, 402 yards. According to the scorecard, this is the toughest hole on the course and one of the longest par 4s. Water flows all the way down the left side to the green and the double bend in the fairway puts a premium on accuracy. The conservative tee shot is down the right side but that will leave a long iron or hybrid into the green. A successful tee shot that challenges the water will leave a much shorter iron on approach. The green is one of Mystic Creek’s largest and the deep bunker on the right side sees its fair share of play. Par is a good score here.

For visitors to the area, Mystic Creek offers some great Stay & Play packages through Troon Golf Vacations. Packages include 2 night’s accommodations, 2 rounds of golf, and two days of car rental from Avis.

Mystic Creek offers a variety of memberships for singles, families, and juniors. If you prefer walking, you can purchase a membership without a cart and save some money. Memberships include all greens fees, cart fees (if applicable), and use of all practice facilities. As a member, you’ll enjoy all the benefits of being a member of a Troon facility, with access to Troon facilities worldwide. For more information, visit them online.

If you live in the El Dorado area and are considering membership at a club, take a look at Mystic Creek. In addition to one of the State’s best golf facilities, they’ll soon have a brand new clubhouse and restaurant which are slated to open in 2021. Mystic Creek offers a variety of memberships, with and with golf carts included.

Mystic is a gem hidden in the middle of no where. It's a world class track.

No clubhouse. No food. Greens were punched but not enough sand applied. Otherwise, fantastic. Great layout. Can tell well cared for. Would have preferred to know the greens were punched. Likely would have come another time.

We knew the greens had been punched a few weeks ago but yesterday the fairways on the front had been punched. Millions of core punches littered the fairways. It was the most extreme fairway punch I’ve ever seen. It really did impact roll and accuracy. Still a fun day.

Played here a year and a half ago the week before Christmas in 40-degree temps and after heavy rain. Needless to say, what a difference seeing Mystic Creek in the throws of Summer, with everything greened up.

See my earlier review for a full course description, but I think this place is really underrated. It largely suffers from being remotely located in southern Arkansas. Troon is managing it now, however, and a new modern clubhouse (think Streamsong) overlooking the 18th hole elevates the course’s status.

What strikes me most about this course are two things: first, the opening holes are incredible. The par-5 first doesn’t exactly ease you in. The short par-4 second requires a tee shot to the left half of the fairway or you will be blocked out on your approach to this tranquil green site. Three and four play around a lake and are tough pars. Second, there aren’t any dull holes. This is largely due to the fact that while the course winds through a residential neighborhood, the houses weren’t built until the course was routed, meaning the architect had his pick of the best spots on the property.

The green complexes are maddening. Severe runoffs and brusque sloping seduce three putts. Second-shot golf course for sure, because if you miss the greens you will have daunting chips and pitches to save par. If you miss the right portion of the green, the aforementioned slopes buck their head and make two putts a day’s work.

My only criticism is that the bunkers were in poor condition. They were washed out and had not been conditioned. That is the only thing keeping this course from getting five stars from me.

Still, Mystic Creek is at the top of the Arkansas public course list in my book.

One of the best conditioned Bermuda courses I've played. I'd been warned about the difficulty and the course lived up to the warnings. Fairly straightforward off the tees, most of the course's teeth are around the greens. Missing greens here is very penalizing, which is compounded by the difficulty of the approach shots and the length of the course. Greens were tough, but the speeds were about average. That was surprising as they looked very fast and were very flat/smooth surfaces. Sand is very fine grained and a small lapse of attention, even for a low handicapper, and you will leave your ball in the bunker. The course is very pretty with numerous ponds, bunkers and elevation changes. An excellent example of Arkansas golf- its got to be one of the best public courses in the state.

Negatives: pace of play will probably never be very fast here as most players will struggle on most of the holes. Even quality players will get bit from time to time here. The club house is very small and per the website/observation, that is being fixed currently with a new clubhouse being built.

My daughter and I drove up from Houston to play here this week. Man, did it not disappoint. But please know, this course is very challenging. Don’t play here if you are looking to lower your handicap :)

These are the best and fastest greens I have ever played. The slope rating is roughly the same as Augusta National. There are false fronts that make it tough to hold greens.

AND, we played for 25 bucks each! I could not believe it. The staff was incredible too. The clubhouse is currently a trailer but the actual structure, I’m told about 4 million, is under construction.

This place is a gem!

This course is truly a hidden gem. Probably not for beginners but if you like to be challenged and want to hit all the clubs in your bag than this is the course for you. It's gorgeous! I took pictures on almost every hole. Practice area is upscale as well.

Greens and fairways were in very good shape when I was there. Not sure if the clubhouse is built yet but if I lived closer I would join with or without a clubhouse. It's that nice

Given where it's located, you will probably be shocked at how nice it is

I had no idea there was a course this nice in El Dorado, Arkansas. I was having doubts as I drove up and saw that the pro shop is in a trailer. BUT.....Conditions were perfect. The course is immaculate, but a very hard layout for a 14-handicapper...1) lots of lateral water, 2) numerous, massive bunkers, 3) fast, uber-undulating greens, 4) tight-ish fairways, with not much forgiveness for misses. HOWEVER, when you're playing a course that is this nice, beautiful, and immaculate, the difficulty takes a backseat. Can't wait to get back to this area to play this course again.

A very beautiful course layout is nice greens are Friendly in very tricky

This is ranked #2 in Golfweek’s Best Courses You Can Play in Arkansas and it lived up to the billing.

Despite eight inches of rain the night before, the course was very playable. I moved up a tee box since drives were getting no roll out in fairways so I could get a good sense of where the approach shots were designed to be played from. Nevertheless, the course still played extremely long. There are six sets of tees: Black, blue, white, green, red and yellow. The black tees tip out at a daunting 7,529 yards. The blues are 7,147 yards. The whites are 6,723 and the greens measure 6,246 yards. So it’s a brawny golf course. After playing it though, I would suggest that in dry conditions the course plays shorter than the yardage because most holes play downhill. There is only one hole (17) that plays truly uphill. Picking the correct tees, however, will be integral to success here.

The greens are large, fast and contain many plateaus, and swales, which provide a lot of movement. Three-putts are in play for anything outside of 20 feet. The bunkering is very dramatic and can deceive your depth perception. Lots of sand in these fluffy bunkers. In fact, the greens and surroundings, particularly in the closing stretch, would make Ross and MacKenzie giggle with devilish delight. Take #17 for example. I have been fortunate to play all over the country and I cannot recall a more difficult green complex and surrounding area. Much like Pinehurst #2, the 17th, and many other greens are domed and push balls off into deep, closely-mown collection areas that are daunting to get up-and-down from. With today’s pin-placement front right on 17, anything left is repelled to an aforementioned collection area. Anything three yards right of flag is rejected to another collection area that is some eight feet below the green. A shot just short will spin back off the front some 40-50 yards down the hill. The prudent play is to the middle of the green beyond the pin. Still, you are left facing a slick downhill putt that could easily roll off the green. Stressful! This makes it a tough course for mid-to-high handicappers simply because there is little to no room for marginal shots.

You must drive it well off the tee to be in the correct position to play approach shots. If you are on the wrong side of some fairways, you will be blocked out by overhanging trees that pinch landing areas. Small creeks border many fairways, as well, making errant tee shots susceptible to red stakes.

There were several memorable holes that were notable. First, the second hole is a brilliant short par 4 that is home to a beautiful green fronted by a pond and surrounded on the other side by bunkers. The par-5 fifth is an excellent risk-reward hole, where even laying up makes short approaches no bargain with all the trouble lurking around the green. The par-3 12th looks almost exactly like another 12th hole in Augusta. The only downside is it plays from a different angle than its famous brethren.

My constructive criticism lies in the fact that there is no yardage guide available or GPS on the carts to help you navigate the course, particularly for first-timers. Troon is now managing the course, so this could perhaps change. I would advise you to print out course notes that can be found on the course’s website. It breaks down each hole and will help on a few holes with lines off the tee and preferred landing areas on greens.

Also, there is no clubhouse. In Sweetens Cove fashion, there is simply a portable trailer that serves as a pro shop, rest room, and office. There are light snacks available but I would plan on fueling up before you get there.