Third Place Finish for The Ham & Eggers Tenpin Bowling Team at the Macmillan Annual Bowling Challenge

Third Place Finish for The Ham & Eggers Tenpin Bowling Team at the Macmillan Annual Bowling Challenge

The Ham & Eggers Tenpin Bowling Team finished with the bronze medal after attempting to defend their Macmillan Cancer Support Annual Bowling Challenge Title at Luton's Namco Station last night (17th November 2010).

The 2010 event saw a change in the format, with the teams now made up of six players, as opposed to four aside as in previous years. Ten teams competed for the prestigious Macmillan Tenpin Bowling Trophy and player medals.

The Ham & Eggers finished the tournament with a two round team score of 1303. The team consisted of Richard, Simon, Mike, Jim, Rob and Alan (Mark/Geoff).

Macmillan Annual Bowling Challenge Honours Board:
2010 - Andy's Team
2009 - The Ham & Eggers
2008 - The Flecney Four
2007 - Plumbs DIY
2006 - Plumbs DIY

Previous Ham & Eggers Team Rankings:
2010 - 3rd
2009 - 1st
2008 - 3rd
2007 - 6th
2006 - DNP




Report from the Ham & Eggers win in the 2009 Macmillan Bowling Challenge.

Blog posts about Ten Pin Bowling.

Blog posts about Bowlingo.

2009 - Ham & Egger Files - The Year in Review

2009 has been a great year for both me and Emily, with some excellent finishes on the British Minigolf Association (BMGA) Tour, stacks of crazy golf courses visited on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour, and lots of competition on the Irregular Mini Golf Tour.

Below is a month by month run down of the highs (and lows) of 2009 as documented here on the Ham & Egger Files.

January
- BMGA Tour 2009 Season Begins (my third year on the Tour and Emily's second)
- 24th place finish in the Star City Open minigolf tournament in Birmingham
- 8th place in the Nayland Classic

February
- A quiet month, with no minigolf or crazy golf events, but one which saw me buy a new sledge

March
- Minigolf course visits 79, 80 and 81 on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour are made
- 6th place finish in the New Malden Invitational minigolf tournament
- 5th place in the Motspur Park Classic competition

April
- Minigolf course visits 82 & 83 on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour take place in the USA at Boondocks Fun Center in Northglenn, Denver, Colorado
- Won the Manchester Mini Masters tournament at Championship MiniatureGolf, Emily is 6th
- Ham & Eggers Ten Pin Bowling Team win the Macmillan Annual Bowling Challenge
- 23rd place in the BMGA British Masters minigolf tournament
- 2nd place finish in the Double-I Double-O (IIOO) competition
- First round win in the BMGA British Matchplay Championships against Phil Exall in Southend
- 4th place in the Luton Sports Network Luton Sports Awards for 2008

May
- Won the Tampere Reunion Classic competition at Wroxham Barns, Norfolk
- Played the 88th course on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour at the Lost World Adventure Golf in Hemsby
- 16th place finish in the BMGA English Open
- Visited the 100th course overall on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour at Pops Meadow Putting Green in Gorleston-on-Seait was closed
- Minigolf Tour of Glasgow
- 5th place finish in the Midlands Invitational Tournament in Stratford-Upon-Avon, 7th place for Emily
- Ham & Eggers Team play in the F.U.N. Charity Ten Pin Bowling Competition
- Help set a new Guinness World Record for "The Largest Picnic across multiple venues" at the picnic in Wardown Park, Luton
- 99th minigolf course played in Windsor

June
- Visit and play minigolf course 100 on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour at Smugglers Cove Adventure Golf at South Shields, Tyneside
- 2nd place in the Newcastle Invitational Tournament, Emily 3rd
- Won the Second Division Play-offs at the BMGA British Doubles at Boscombe Chine with new Minigolf Doubles Partner Kevin Moseley
- 10th place in the Midland Open minigolf tournament

July
- Minigolf course visit 111 was right under our noses in Luton, at Tea Green Golf at Wandon End
- Lost to John 'Big Top Ted' McIver by one-hole in the second-round of the BMGA British Matchplay Championships in Hastings
- 25th place in the BMGA British Championships
- Gottfrieds finish first and second in the Manchester Miniature Open tournament
- Appeared on BBC2 Quiz Show 'Eggheads' as Captain of the Crazy Golf Team - Nutters with Putters

August
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour - Tour of Wales takes place with 28 Crazy Golf (Golff Gwyllt) courses played in a week
- 2nd place in the Boules Invitational Tournament at The Mumbles in Swansea (Abertawe)
- 2nd place finish in the first-ever Cystadleuaeth Minigolff Cymraeg (Welsh Minigolf Tournament) in Swansea (Abertawe)
- Entered the Crystal Maze near Narbeth, Wales

September
- Visited and played my 150th minigolf course on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour at the Arnold Palmer Crazee Golf in Southport
- Won the Blackpool Pleasure Beach Open minigolf tournament
- Set a new BMGA and all-time Course Record of 24 (par) during the Blackpool Pleasure Beach Open, beating Emily's old BMGA record by three shots
- 21st place in the BMGA Players Championships in Margate
- 25th place finish in the BMGA British Open

October
- Won the Johnson's Scrap Iron Cup in Sandbanks
- Captain of the defending BMGA British Club Champions - the Midlands Minigolf Club
- 7th place finish in the BMGA British Club Championships
- 2nd place in the London Open minigolf competition
- 2nd place finish in the Weymouth Open tournament
- Set a new BMGA course record of 41(+5) at the Weymouth Sealife Pirate Adventure Golf Course at Lodmoor Country Park during the Weymouth Open
- Retains the Scrap Iron Cup in Weymouth
- 3rd place in the "www.miniaturegolfer.com 'Nine Best' Crazy Golf Championship"
- Represented England for the third time at the Castle Golf World Crazy Golf Championships in Hastings, finished 17th, Emily 45th

November
- 8th place finish in the Kent Open minigolf tournament in Margate
- BMGA Tour 2009 Season Ends
- Ranked 8th in the BMGA Season-only Rankings, Emily 37th
- Ranked 16th in the BMGA Order of Merit Rankings, Emily 39th
- Ranked 418th in the World Minigolfsport Federation Mens Rankings, Emily 130th in the Womens Rankings List
- Ranked 31st in the Castle Golf World Crazy Golf Rankings, Emily 50th
- Ranked 1st in the Irregular Mini Golf Tour Rankings for 2008-2009, Emily 2nd
- Ranked 2nd within the Midlands Minigolf Club (based on 2009 BMGA Season-only Rankings), Emily 10th
- Ranked 3rd within the Midlands Minigolf Club (based on 2008-2009 BMGA Order of Merit Rankings), Emily 6th

December
- 5th place finish in the 2009 Christmas Crazy Golf Challenge minigolf competition, Emily ties for 9th spot
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour course visit number 200 overall is at the 9-hole Crazy Golf Course at the Kingsway Golf Centre in Melbourn, Cambridgeshire
- Used the sledge I bought in February for the first time
- An attempt to break the Guinness World Record for "How many Brussels Sprouts can you eat in one minute" fails
- The Ham & Egger Files Blog celebrates its third birthday

A peek ahead at 2010?
Who knows what will happen, or where we'll be going on our various minigolf, crazy golf and other strange sporting adventures in 2010 - what is known is that a lot of fun will be had on the way!

The Ham & Eggers Tenpin Bowling Team Defend Their Title Tonight!

The Ham & Eggers Tenpin Bowling Team will be defending their Macmillan Cancer Support Annual Bowling Challenge Title at Luton's Namco Station tonight.

The 2009 title was won by a team of four with a two game team score of 870.

The 2010 event had been scheduled to take place in April. The new date also sees a change in the format, with the teams now made up of six players.

Macmillan Annual Bowling Challenge Honours Board:
2009 - The Ham & Eggers
2008 - The Flecney Four
2007 - Plumbs DIY
2006 - Plumbs DIY

Previous Ham & Eggers Team Rankings:
2009 - 1st
2008 - 3rd
2007 - 6th
2006 - DNP

Report from the Ham & Eggers win in the 2009 Macmillan Bowling Challenge.

Blog posts about Ten Pin Bowling.

Blog posts about Bowlingo.

Competitive socialising spots in Manchester

A look at places to play a range of competitive socialising games and activities in Manchester city centre.

Looking for fun places to play some games in Manchester, then read on...

While minigolf is the main game we play, we're big fans of a wide-range of what are now termed 'competitive socialising' activities.

And luckily for us, Manchester city centre has a brilliant variety of different places to play.

The landscape of competitive socialising venues is constantly changing, with locations opening, closing, and being refurbished, while others expand or change the activities available entirely.

That said, please do check with the venue in advance to make sure they are open and have the game(s) you want to play before travelling!

Places to play some fun games in Manchester city centre.

Below is a list of places to play a range of different games in Manchester city centre.

Minigolf, Crazy Golf, Adventure Golf:

• Junkyard Golf, First Street
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Putters Tech-Infused Mini Golf at Urban Playground, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Golf at Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate
• Treetop Adventure Golf, The Printworks

Crazy Pool:

• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre

Arcade Games:

• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• NQ64, Peter Street
• NQ64, Northern Quarter
• Pixel Bar Manchester, Thomas Street

Axe Throwing:

• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks

Beer Pong / Prosecco Pong:

• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• Lane7, Deansgate
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate

Cricket / Batting Cages:

• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Sixes Social Cricket, Corn Exchange

Escape Rooms:

• Breakout Manchester, Church Street
• Breakout Manchester, Newton Street
• Escape Hunt Manchester, Corn Exchange
• Lucardo Escape Rooms, Great Ancoats Street

'Game Shows':

• Challenge Point, Newton Street
• The Crystal Maze, Lower Byrom Street
• The Cube at Urban Playground, Arndale Centre

Golf / Virtual Golf:

• Pitch Golf (opening in Quarter 4 of 2025)

Ice Free Curling:

• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate

Interactive / Tech / AR Darts:

• Black Cat Club, Brown Street
• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• Flight Club, King Street
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Twenty Twenty Two, Little Lever Street
• The Gas Works Brewbar, Jack Rosenthal Street

Ping Pong / Table Tennis:

• Pong & Puck, Deansgate
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate
• The Brotherhood Of Pursuits And Pastimes, Mount Street
• Twenty Twenty Two, Little Lever Street

Shooting Galleries:

• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Point Bank, Deansgate

Shuffleboard:

• 7Sins, Northern Quarter
• Black Cat Club, Brown Street
• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• Electric Shuffle, Deansgate
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Pong & Puck, Deansgate
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate
• The Bierkeller Manchester, The Printworks
• The Gas Works Brewbar, Jack Rosenthal Street

Ten Pin Bowling / Duck Pin Bowling:

• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Lane7, Deansgate
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Tenpin, The Printworks

Virtual Reality (VR) / Gaming:

• DNA VR Manchester, Brown Street
• Immersive Gamebox, Arndale Centre

All-round venues:

These places offer a range of different games and activities, these are also listed above in the specific activities.

• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate
• Trax Social, The Printworks
• Urban Playground, Arndale Centre

Something missing?

Have we missed any places to play in Manchester city centre? Do let us know.

Your favourite games and places?

What's your favourite game and place to play? Let us know in the comments.

Beyond Manchester city centre.

Moving out from the city centre you'll find several more places to play games in the borough of Manchester, such as the Parrs Wood Entertainment Centre where you can find tenpin bowling, indoor minigolf, laser tag, escape rooms and more. And over at The Trafford Centre and Trafford Palazzo - and some of their neighbours - you can find a lot of fun things to see, do and play too.

Our home town of Stockport is also increasing in the number of competitive socialising places to play a range of games.

And when you take into account all of the competitive socialising venues in Manchester's metropolitan boroughs of Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Salford, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, and Wigan you have got an incredible choice of places to play!

Competitive socialising in Manchester

Competitive socialising, activity bars, entertainment, and leisure venues in Manchester.

A look at places to play a range of competitive socialising games and activities in Manchester city centre.

Looking for fun places to play some games in Manchester, then read on...

While minigolf is the main game we play, we're big fans of a wide-range of what are now termed 'competitive socialising' activities. And luckily for us, Manchester city centre has a brilliant variety of different places to play.

The landscape of competitive socialising venues is constantly changing, with locations opening, closing, and being refurbished, while others expand or change the activities available entirely. That said, please do check with the venue in advance to make sure they are open and have the game(s) you want to play before travelling!

Places to play some fun games in Manchester city centre.

Below is a list of places to play a range of different games in Manchester city centre (as at July 2025).

Minigolf, Crazy Golf, Adventure Golf:

• Junkyard Golf, First Street
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Putters Tech-Infused Mini Golf at Urban Playground, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Golf at Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate
• Treetop Adventure Golf, The Printworks

Crazy Pool:

• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre

Arcade Games:

• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• NQ64, Peter Street
• NQ64, Northern Quarter
• Pixel Bar Manchester, Thomas Street

Axe Throwing:

• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks

Beer Pong / Prosecco Pong:

• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• Lane7, Deansgate
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate

Cricket / Batting Cages:

• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Sixes Social Cricket, Corn Exchange

Escape Rooms:

• Breakout Manchester, Church Street
• Breakout Manchester, Newton Street
• Escape Hunt Manchester, Corn Exchange
• Lucardo Escape Rooms, Great Ancoats Street

'Game Shows':

• Challenge Point, Newton Street
• The Crystal Maze, Lower Byrom Street
• The Cube at Urban Playground, Arndale Centre

Golf / Virtual Golf:

• Pitch Golf (opening in Quarter 4 of 2025)

Ice Free Curling:

• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate

Interactive / Tech / AR Darts:

• Black Cat Club, Brown Street
• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• Flight Club, King Street
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Twenty Twenty Two, Little Lever Street
• The Gas Works Brewbar, Jack Rosenthal Street

Ping Pong / Table Tennis:

• Pong & Puck, Deansgate
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate
• The Brotherhood Of Pursuits And Pastimes, Mount Street
• Twenty Twenty Two, Little Lever Street

Shooting Galleries:

• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Point Bank, Deansgate

Shuffleboard:

• 7Sins, Northern Quarter
• Black Cat Club, Brown Street
• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• Electric Shuffle, Deansgate
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Pong & Puck, Deansgate
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate
• The Bierkeller Manchester, The Printworks
• The Gas Works Brewbar, Jack Rosenthal Street

Ten Pin Bowling / Duck Pin Bowling:

• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Lane7, Deansgate
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Tenpin, The Printworks

Virtual Reality (VR) / Gaming:

• DNA VR Manchester, Brown Street
• Immersive Gamebox, Arndale Centre

All-round venues:

These places offer a range of different games and activities, these are also listed above in the specific activities.

• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate
• Trax Social, The Printworks
• Urban Playground, Arndale Centre

Something missing?

Have we missed any places to play in Manchester city centre? Do let us know.

Your favourite games and places?

What's your favourite game and place to play? Let us know in the comments on this post.

Beyond Manchester city centre.

Moving out from the city centre you'll find several more places to play games in the borough of Manchester, such as the Parrs Wood Entertainment Centre (our nearest venue) where you can find tenpin bowling, indoor minigolf, laser tag, escape rooms and more.

And when you take into account all of the competitive socialising venues in Manchester's metropolitan boroughs of Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Salford, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, and Wigan you have got an incredible choice of places to play!

Ten Pin Bowling and a Wacky Waving Arm-Flailing Inflatable Tube-man

In November the Ham & Eggers tenpin bowling team are looking to once again win the prestigious Macmillan Cancer Support Annual Bowling Challenge. Ahead of the tournament we went for a few games of Tenpin Bowling at Namco Station in Luton at the weekend, where I was captured doing an (unintentional) impression of a Wacky Waving Arm-Flailing Inflatable Tube-man!


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Competitive socialising, activity bars, entertainment, and leisure venues in Manchester

A look at places to play a range of competitive socialising games and activities in Manchester city centre.

While minigolf is the main game we play, we're big fans of a range of what are now termed 'competitive socialising' activities. And luckily for us Manchester city centre has a variety of different places to play.

The landscape of competitive socialising venues is constantly changing, with locations opening and closing, while others expand or change the activities available.

Below is a list of places to play a range of different games in Manchester city centre as at April 2025.

Minigolf, Crazy Golf, Adventure Golf:

• Junkyard Golf, First Street
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Putters Tech-Infused Mini Golf at Urban Playground, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Golf at Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate
• Treetop Adventure Golf, The Printworks

Crazy Pool:

• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre

Arcade Games:

• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• NQ64, Peter Street
• NQ64, Northern Quarter
• Pixel Bar Manchester, Thomas Street

Axe Throwing:

• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks

Baseball:

• Base Bar, Millow Street

Beer Pong / Prosecco Pong:

• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• Lane7, Deansgate
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate

Cricket / Batting Cages:

• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Sixes Social Cricket, Corn Exchange

Escape Rooms:

• Breakout Manchester, Church Street
• Breakout Manchester, Newton Street
• Escape Hunt Manchester, Corn Exchange
• Lucardo Escape Rooms, Great Ancoats Street

'Game Shows':

• Challenge Point, Newton Street
• The Crystal Maze, Lower Byrom Street
• The Cube at Urban Playground, Arndale Centre

Golf / Virtual Golf:

• Pitch Golf (opening 2025)

Ice Free Curling:

• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate

Interactive / Tech / AR Darts:

• Black Cat Club, Brown Street
• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• Flight Club, King Street
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Twenty Twenty Two, Little Lever Street
• The Gas Works Brewbar, Jack Rosenthal Street

Ping Pong / Table Tennis:

• Pong & Puck, Deansgate
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate
• The Brotherhood Of Pursuits And Pastimes, Mount Street
• Twenty Twenty Two, Little Lever Street

Shooting Galleries:

• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Point Bank, Deansgate

Shuffleboard:

• 7Sins, Northern Quarter
• Black Cat Club, Brown Street
• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• Electric Shuffle, Deansgate
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Pong & Puck, Deansgate
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate
• The Bierkeller Manchester, The Printworks
• The Gas Works Brewbar, Jack Rosenthal Street

Ten Pin Bowling / Duck Pin Bowling:

• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Lane7, Deansgate
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Tenpin, The Printworks

Virtual Reality (VR) / Gaming:

• DNA VR Manchester, Brown Street
• Immersive Gamebox, Arndale Centre

All-round venues:

These places offer a range of different games and activities, these are also listed above in the specific activities.

• Boom Battle Bar, The Printworks
• King Pins, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Arndale Centre
• Roxy Ball Room, Deansgate
• Trax Social, The Printworks
• Urban Playground, Arndale Centre

Have we missed any places to play in Manchester city centre?

What's your favourite game and place to play?

Do let us know in the comments.

Games and fun at the King Pins Arndale Summer Mixer

Attending the King Pins Arndale Summer Mixer event in Manchester.

I attended the King Pins Arndale Summer Mixer business networking event at King Pins in the Manchester Arndale Centre yesterday for an evening of competitive fun and games.

King Pins Arndale recently celebrated the venue's first birthday and I've previously been there to play the minigolf course on my Crazy World of Minigolf Tour (in October last year in a match-up versus my fellow minigolf adventurer Tom Loftus from the USA), and Emily and I have swung by for drinks and a bite to eat there too.

The indoor Mini Golf course at King Pins

This time I got to play Tenpin Bowling, Ice-Free Curling and Tech Darts - what a triathlon!

I hadn't had a game of tenpin bowling for ages, and while I only got one strike I did hit quite a few nines and spares.

One of the two Ice-Free Curling rinks

I'd never played Ice-Free Curling before and I really enjoyed it.

Ice-Free Curling gets the thumbs-up from me

King Pins has two curling sheets in their rink! Playing in two teams the match got very competitive, with plenty of strategy and tactics brought into play.

A well placed stone

Curling is similar to boules/petanque in the scoring and gameplay - another one of those games that is easy to pick up and play, but very tricky to master!

There was plenty of drama and action in our curling match-up!

We finished the evening with the Tech Darts where we were able to play a range of different games, as well as games of 201 and 501, with the tech taking care of the scoring for us. It was a reminder for me to get my dartboard up at home as I haven't played for quite a while and my 'arrers were pretty rusty!

King Pins is a nicely set-up space with plenty of room to enjoy the games with your group, without knocking into or overlapping with others. While me and the other attendees of the event were playing there were lots of other groups, couples and families visiting the venue for a game or two.

Ten needed...

...double 5 got

As well as the tenpin bowling, tech darts and ice-free curling King Pins Arndale also offers a packed arcade in the basement, shuffleboard (and bank shot shuffleboard and tech shuffle), a batting cage, duck pin bowling, wild west shooting, and karaoke booths!

I'm looking forward to playing more Ice-Free Curling in the future

The darts area has three tech dart boards and plenty of space around the oche

If you haven't yet been, I recommend a visit to King Pins for yourself. Even if you're not playing any games it's a chilled out spot to get a drink and relax for a while during a shopping trip at the Arndale.

As well as the Arndale Centre venue in Manchester, you can find King Pins locations at the Trafford Palazzo in Manchester and Bristol. The new Glasgow King Pins opens later this month, with the Leeds location opening in August, and a Belfast King Pins opening soon!

I'm still yet to have a go on the Hungry Hungry Hippos arcade game - it looks very cool

Check out the King Pins website for more information.

Many thanks to the team at King Pins for organising the free Summer Mixer event. It's always nice to get out and about, meet new people, and network. And it's a real bonus if the venue is as fun as King Pins!

Mini Golf courses in Castleford

There are plenty of options for Adventure Golf in Castleford.

Putting on one of the two outdoor Adventure Golf courses in Castleford

Since our last visit to Castleford in 2010 there have been some more exciting additions to the leisure and retail area just off Junction 32 of the M62.

On Sunday 12 April 2015 we were heading back home to Leagrave after a weekend in York and Knaresborough and decided to stop-off for a look at the courses and a round or two.

The area has become a minigolf hotbed, with six minigolf courses across three sites and a total of 87-holes! This is a huge amount of holes in a relatively small area. And especially so for an inland location.

Most seasides in the UK have some type of minigolf course. Often a Crazy Golf, Putting Green or Adventure Golf, and sometimes a few different types. Largs in Scotland has 81-holes over four grass Putting courses, plus a 9-hole Crazy Golf course. Cleethorpes has 73-holes over five courses, Hastings has 72-holes (54 at the sea front and 18-holes of Putting at White Rock Gardens). At last count Great Yarmouth was home to 69-holes over five courses, while Blackpool had 60-holes across its four sea front courses and Hunstanton has 57-holes spread along the front.

Looking at those places we've visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour only Skegness outdoes Castleford in terms of the number of holes. Skeggy has 102-holes spread across nine seafront courses.

When we visited the Xscape centre in 2010 we played the 199th and 200th courses on our tour at the Cosmic Golf courses.

The Glow-in-the-Dark Adventure Golf course is now called 4D Golf

The 6-hole 'Search for Atlantis' and 9-hole 'Curse of the Mummy in 3D' courses are both indoor black light mini golf layouts. They're now called '4D Golf'.

Under the sea

Playing the Curse of the Mummy minigolf course

Pirate Island Adventure Golf at the Junction 32 Outlet Shopping Centre features 36-holes over two 18-holes courses - Smugglers Bay and Skull Cove.

Emily playing the Smugglers Bay course

Playing at Pirate Island Adventure Golf

Back over at Xscape Yorkshire are another 36-holes of Adventure Golf. The Volcano Falls layout is spread over two 18-hole courses - the Volcano Valley and T Rex Trail.

On hole 18 of the T Rex Trail

Putting on the lucky last hole

Of course if you fancy taking a break from the minigolf while there you can always go shopping at the Junction 32 Outlet Shopping Village or explore the other fun and games on offer at Xscape Yorkshire. There's lots to do and play, including laser tag, a laser maze, amusement arcades, ten pin bowling, a cinema, climbing walls, skate park, indoor ski slope and snow zone, skyride and more.

Links:
- 4D Cosmic Golf website
- Pirate Island Adventure Golf website
- Volcano Falls Adventure Golf website
- Xscape Yorkshire website
- Junction 32 Outlet Shopping Village website

Related blog posts:
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour
- Castleford
- Indoor Mini, Crazy and Adventure Golf courses
- Cosmic 4D Golf at Xscape Yorkshire
- Pirate Island Adventure Golf at Junction 32 in Castleford
- Volcano Falls Adventure Golf at Xscape Yorkshire

Like the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour on Facebook, check out our YouTube channel and follow me and Emily on Twitter.

Trailer Trash Jim's Crazy Golf inside Level at Preston Guild Hall

New indoor Crazy Golf course opening at Preston Guild Hall.

Part of the redevelopment of Preston Guild Hall includes the opening of a new Crazy Golf course. Trailer Trash Jim's Crazy Golf will be located on Level 1 of Level - Preston's new leisure and entertainment venue.

It sounds like a brilliant place as not only will there be an indoor Crazy Golf course on Level 1, but you can also play Laser Tag and Arcade Games. Level 2 has Ten Pin Bowling and Darts, while Level 3 of the centre is home to a Daredevil Assault Course.

Level at Preston Guild Hall opens on Friday 8th December.

Visit the Preston Guild Hall website and Level Preston on Facebook for more information.

Happy Birthday Ham & Egger Files!

Today is the first Birthday of the Ham & Egger Files website!

Over the past year the progress of the UK's top Obscure Sportsmen and Women have been charted on this site, with tales of heroic triumph and mediocrity in sports including Minigolf, Finger Jousting and Ten Pin Bowling.

Here's to the next year of sporting fun!

Happy Third Birthday Ham & Egger Files!

Today is the third Birthday of the Ham & Egger Files website!

Over the past three years me and Emily's Adventures on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour (and in other sports and games) have been logged through 536 posts here at the Ham & Egger Files website.

We've travelled the UK playing in Minigolf and Crazy Golf Tournaments (winning a fair few on the way), visited over 200 Miniature Golf courses on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour, represented Great Britain at Minigolf Sport, Finger Jousted our way to victory, competed in Ten Pin Bowling Tournaments and even attempted to break a couple of Guinness World Records!

Here's to the next year (and more) of sporting fun!

Star Pins opening in Coventry

An indoor mini golf course will be part of the new Star Pins family entertainment centre in Coventry.

Star Pins Coventry is the first venue of the new brand from the team behind Roxy Leisure and King Pins. The Star Pins Coventry location is scheduled to open in November.

As well as ten pin bowling and mini golf, the entertainment centre will also feature darts, ping pong, shuffleboard, pool and ice-free curling.

Star Pins will be another new venue for us to visit on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

New Lane7 venue opening in Glasgow

A new Lane7 venue is planned to open at the St Enoch Centre in Glasgow.

The new location at the St Enoch Shopping Centre will include mini golf, ping pong, ten-pin bowling and more.

Visit the Lane7 website for more information.

We've played minigolf at Lane7 in Newcastle upon Tyne on a couple of occasions.