Work begins before El Dorado Shootout starts

News-Times
News-Times

Next week, Mystic Creek will host the fifth annual Murphy USA El Dorado Shootout. The Symetra Tour tournament is the biggest professional sporting event in the area and is an official qualifier for the LPGA.

The tournament actually tees off on April 26, but the work began weeks ago, according to Courtney Crotty, tournament director.

“For the last weeks leading up to the tournament, my primary focus is Symetra and that is monitoring the weather, making sure we have evacuation plans in process in case of inclement weather, making sure that beverages and food are delivered accordingly, checking over menus, making sure we have infrastructure in place to have the tournament,” Crotty said on Wednesday. “I would say, that, probably a month leading up to the tournament is probably my biggest focus and the thing I’m thinking about at night when I go home.”

Crotty said this is her second year as tournament director. It gets easier but it’s never easy and it’s definitely not a one-person undertaking.

“As hectic as it is, it is in some ways business as usual because we have such a great team in place. We have a committee of at least 15 individuals who also have sub-committees under them and they’re the real backbone of this tournament,” she said. “They’re the ones that are thinking of the small details so I don’t have to. And, they’re the ones that are really working the hardest the week of the tournament to make sure things go off without a hitch.

“This year they threw a curveball for me. We usually have the tournament in September but in order to give a longer construction time for the new Mystic Creek clubhouse, our executive team decided we would move the 2019 tournament to April and return to our normal tournament time of September in 2020.”

Crotty said the weather is more of a factor in the spring.

“The forecast is enough to make anyone nervous, especially someone over a large outdoor event,” she said. “April in Arkansas tends to be unpredictable. We have to prepare for rain and tornados and all that other bad stuff we wouldn’t particularly have to worry about as much in September.”

The activities begin with a Jr. Clinic on Monday, from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. at Mystic Creek. The event is free and open to children ages 6-to-18. To participate in the Jr. Clinic, register online at eldoradoshootout.com or register early on the day of the event.

“They can come out and learn to play the game of golf from professionals,” said Crotty. “We also have assistance from local golf professionals in the area from the country club, from Mystic, from Kids-N-Golf. They get the best of both worlds, in a sense. On Tuesday, we host an event for host homes and for the players. It’s called Meet the Pros. We put that event on at Murphy Arts District. We’re excited to showcase all that El Dorado has to offer in the downtown area. We move into our Pro-Am Tournament days on Wednesday and Thursday.”

The Pro-Am is especially important for the players, who get a good look at the course. Crotty said almost half of this year’s field will be new to Mystic Creek.

Speaking of, the golf course has been one of the big draws to the event and annually produces raves from the players.

“One of the largest things that happens before the tournament are the grounds have to be prepared,” said Crotty. “We have to give a huge shout out to Scott Kuhn at Mystic Creek for all that he and his team do to make sure Mystic is as beautiful as it can be and the course is challenging and pleasing to the eye for the players and spectators.”

The tournament has truly become a community event. The amount of work put forth behind the scenes is a collective effort.

“Right now, we probably have between 30 and 50 people who are working. That does not include Symetra staff, the individuals who work for Symetra who come in and get things ready,” said Crotty. “The week of the tournament, we have, roughly, 500 volunteers who help put the tournament on. Those are volunteers, not including our staff or committee members. Over half of our volunteers are made up of community members. Without them, we would be short-staffed during the tournament.

“Thanks to First Financial Bank, the event is free admission. We encourage spectators to come out and witness top-level golf in their backyard. It won’t cost them anything.”

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