Natural State Golf ranks the best golf courses in Hot Springs Village, Arkansas (HSV). HSV is a retirement community that has 9 golf courses. 8 of these courses are accessible by the public and give discounts for play to property owners in Hot Springs Village. One course, Diamante, is a private golf club.
HSV is a gated community with lots of activities including lakes, trails, tennis, pickleball, gardening, and many other things to do. The golf courses in Hot Springs Village were built from 1972 to the 2010s. This is Natural State Golf’s ranking of the best courses in Hot Springs Village. This ranking will only include the 8 par 72 courses since it is difficult to compare the short course of Coronado to the regulation courses.
1. Granada Golf Club
This is probably an unexpected pick with Granada getting the top spot instead of the acclaimed private club of Diamante. Granada is given the top spot because it is full of interesting and memorable golf holes.
Granada is the newest 18-hole course built in Hot Springs Village. Opening in 2004, the course sits on a piece of land that offers dramatic elevation changes, which are evident from the first hole.
The first hole is a medium-length par 5 that drops steeply down the hill to the landing area. The right side of the fairway provides a bank to funnel any tee shots lost to the right back to the fairway. The second shot leads the player dramatically back up the hill to a blind green site. The downhill opening tee shot is the first of several the player will face, including holes 4, 7, 10, 15, and 16. Approach shots playing up the hill to green sites is another common theme, as holes 1, 7, 12, 15, and 18 all follow suit.
2. Diamante Country Club
Diamante is the only private club in HSV and certainly beats the other Village golf courses in terms of amenities in conditioning. While in better condition than Granada, Diamante falls to the number two slot because Granada just has too many holes that feel the same and are not easily distinguishable from one another. The course has hosted a Korn Ferry tour (then the Buy.com tour) event from 2001-2004. The short par 4 17th is one of the best par 4s in HSV, with water up the right side of the entire while and a large, multi-tier green.
3. Isabella Golf Club
Isabella has 3 nines for 27 holes total. The original 18 holes at Isabella is the second newest course in Hot Springs Village and the 3rd 9 holes are the newest holes in the Village. Isabella is located close to the east gate of Hot Springs Village. Each of the nines at Isabella has its strengths.
Nina has unique green complexes like the deep, slender 2nd green. Pinta finishes strong with the final 4 holes including a short par 4, a long par 5, a downhill par 3 over a pond, and a strong, demanding par 4 finisher. Santa Maria has a similar feel to Granada with wider landing areas and a variety of demanding holes.
4. Ponce de Leon Golf Club
Ponce de Leon provides a stern test for most golfers and might be the most demanding course in the village besides Diamante. The course opened in 1991 and plays just over 6900 yards from the back tees. Ponce provides a good variety of hole lengths. The par 3s require a variety of clubs off the tee and there are both short and long par 4s. There are holes that you feel like you should take advantage of and holes that you are proud to walk off with a par.
Ponce de Leon Golf Club website
Natural State Golf review of Ponce de Leon
5. Magellan Golf Club
Magellan golf course in Hot Springs Village, Arkansas is the shortest full-length course in the Village from the back tees. It originally only had three holes intended for practice and teaching. Three of the four par 5s are under 500 yards and there are only two par 4s that play over 400 yards from the back tees.
6. Cortez Golf Club
Cortez has the feel of an older HSV course such as DeSoto or Ponce De Leon, compared to the newer courses of Isabella and Granada. Several holes have severe doglegs that force players to lay back unless they are willing to take on quite a bit of risk. Holes 2, 4, 7, and 11 all have significant doglegs with three of the four holes being par 5s.
While HSV is full of holes with OB on both sides, Cortez has several holes that are extremely tight with hazards or OB causing anxiety for the golfer who does not have control over the driver. Tee shots on 2, 14, and 15 are tight, along with the layup shots on 7 and 11 having small landing areas.
7. De Soto Golf Club
De Soto is the oldest course in HSV and is located on the western side of the community. The course opened in 1972 and has a different feel from the newer courses like Granada and Isabella. It is a shorter course at 6600 yards from the back tees. The landing areas off the tee are tighter than the new courses in the Village.
8. Balboa Golf Club
Balboa comes in last in our rankings of the best golf courses in Hot Springs Village, but this does not mean it is not an enjoyable place to play. Balboa starts and ends with interesting holes but has too many forgettable experiences in between to rank higher on our list. It is a more walkable course than many in the Village due to the routing and the lack of elevation change. Too many of the holes are fairly straightforward, what you see is what you get holes.