Crazy Golf in Dunoon

A look at the Crazy Golf course in Dunoon, Scotland.

Many thanks to Martin Evans, head of the Telegraph Pole Appreciation Society, for sending over this snap of the Crazy Golf course in Dunoon. It's a course we're yet to visit!

By a strange coincidence Telegraph Pole Appreciation Day and Miniature Golf Day are both on the 21st of September each year. Who would've thought there'd be so much crossover between the two hobbies.

You can view a post about the telegraph poles Martin found on his trip on the Telegraph Pole Appreciation Society website.

88 years since the first National Tom Thumb Golf Championship took place

Celebrating 88 years since the first National Tom Thumb Championship was contested in Chattanooga.

Garnet Carter created the first artificial miniature golf course in the USA in 1926. The first of the 'Tom Thumb Golf' brand of miniature golf course was an 18-hole layout located near Lookout Mountain in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

By 1930 there were some 25,000 miniature golf courses in the USA, 3,000 of which were the now patented Tom Thumb course franchises.

The course and fantasy theming soon caught the imagination of visitors and on the 23rd October 1930 the final of the first-ever National Tom Thumb Championship took place.

Qualifying events had taken place in all of the then 48 states of the USA, with 200 players representing 30 states in the grand final. The event had a total cash fund of $10,000, with the champion winning $2,000!

We haven't played a Tom Thumb Golf course on our travels, but we do have some nice old postcards of Tom Thumb courses in our collection. This one is of a course at Westende Bains in Belgium

Today hundreds of tournaments take place around the world and the game is experiencing a real boom.

Check out the Crazy Golf Museum website for more details of minigolf history.

Mini Golf at Brodick, Isle of Arran

A view of the Crazy Golf course at Brodick, Isle of Arran.

Stockport-based artist Eamonn Murphy recently stumped us on Twitter when he challenged us to identify a Crazy Golf course he had visited.

What a location for a course

We had no idea it was the course at The Taste of Arran Shop & Mini Golf in Brodick, Isle of Arran.

It looks like a cracking layout with some wonderful views. We can't wait to play it.

Like buses, you don't see the Crazy Golf course in Brodick in twelve years of minigolfing and then two people tell you about the course! Check out Martin Evans photo of the course in this guest blog post.

Crazy Golf at Brodick, Isle of Arran

A look at the Crazy Golf course at Brodick, Isle of Arran.

A big thank you to Martin Evans, founder of the Telegraph Pole Appreciation Society, for sending over this photo of the Crazy Golf course at Brodick on the Isle of Arran. It's a course we're yet to visit and it looks marvellous!

What a colourful layout

You can find the course at The Taste of Arran Shop & Mini Golf.

By a strange coincidence Telegraph Pole Appreciation Day and Miniature Golf Day are both on the 21st of September each year. Who would've thought there'd be so much crossover between the two hobbies.

You can view a post about the telegraph poles Martin found on his trip on the society website.

Like buses, you don't see the Crazy Golf course in Brodick in twelve years of crazy golfing and then two people tell you about the course! Check out Eamonn Murphy's photo of the course in this guest blog post.

Guide to constructing a minigolf course from Mini Golf Ltd

Stan Stoyanov of Mini Golf Ltd. recently got in touch offering a free intro guide to constructing a minigolf course. Take a look at the PDF.

It's an interesting look into what goes into bringing a miniature golf course to life!

Stan Stoyanov and Mini Golf Ltd. are based in Sofia, Bulgaria and you can see a gallery of courses on the website.

38 of the 847 courses we've visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour have been overseas, but we haven't been to Bulgaria. Yet.

Links:
- Miniature Golf Plans
- Free Guide from Mini Golf Ltd

Southwold Putting in Suffolk

A visit to Southwold Putting and Cafe on the Green.

You get a splendid view of the art deco pier from the course

While on a trip to East Anglia in May we swung by the seaside town of Southwold and were pleasantly surprised to see the Putting course there was open. On our last visit to Southwold in May 2009 we were two days too early to play it!

The course was the 478th played on our tour

The Southwold Putting & Cafe on the Green site has new operators and it looks a lot different to 2009.

A lovely spot for a nice sit down, or a game of minigolf. Or both

The Southwold Putting course was the 478th played and 811th visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. We're now up to 847 courses visited since September 2006.

The course was a good test of putting skill

I managed to score aces on the 7th and 11th holes. It's always nice to score holes-in-one on grass Putting courses

It was really nice to have a round on the Putting course at Southwold. I managed to shoot the low round of the week and qualify for the course's end-of-season tournament too! What a nice bonus.

The previous best had been a 45

The end-of-season competition is taking place on Sunday 28th October. Unfortunately I won't be able to compete in the two-round tournament this time. I'd love to give the course another go though. Fingers crossed the competitors get some unseasonably nice weather for the event next weekend.

Check out Southwold Putting & Cafe on the Green on Facebook for more info.

Related blog posts:
- Southwold
- Southwold Putting Green (2009)
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

Link:
- Southwold Putting & Cafe on the Green

Crazy Golf in Leysdown-on-Sea, Isle of Sheppey

A look at the Crazy Golf course in Leysdown-on-Sea, Isle of Sheppey.

Many thanks to our friend Simon Martin for sending over these snaps of the Crazy Golf in Leysdown, Isle of Sheppey. It's a new one for us to see!

The only miniature golf course we found on our visit to the Isle of Sheppey in 2014 was the Pitch & Putt at Barton's Point Coastal Park.

We'll have to swing by next time we're down that way.

Check out Simon's website, including the Mini Golf photography project he did a few years ago.

Related blog posts:
- Mini Golf by Simon Martin
- Simon Martin
- Isle of Sheppey
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

Dragon's Lair Mini Golf in North Wildwood, New Jersey

A look at the Dragon's Lair Mini Golf course in North Wildwood, New Jersey, USA.

Many thanks to Adam Lueb for sending over these great photos from his visit to the Dragon's Lair Mini Golf course in North Wildwood New Jersey. Another course we'd love to visit!

It's interesting to see a glow in the dark medieval themed course. I bet my brother, and charter member of the Crazy World Minigolf Tour, Christopher would love to play the course too. He's really into knights and castles.

Check out the guest blog posts from Adam's visits to minigolf course at Funspot New Hampshire and Bermuda Fun Golf.

On Adam's trip to Bermuda he had to follow some green feet to another course!

Many thanks again to Adam for the snaps from Dragon's Lair. Do give him a follow on Instagram.

Check out the Dragon's Lair Mini Golf website for more information.

Bali Mini Golf in Indonesia

Photos from a course visit to Bali Mini Golf in Indonesia.

Charter member of the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour Christopher Gottfried was recently on holiday in Bali, Indonesia and while there he swung by Bali Mini Golf and Luwak Coffee Garden!

Christopher at Bali Mini Golf

You can find minigolf courses - and interesting business combinations - around the world!

  

Since 2011 Christopher has now visited 23 courses on his own mini-Crazy World of Minigolf Tour! Details below:

1. Brighton - Crazy Golf
2. Paignton Pier - Crazy Golf
3. Herne Bay - Mini Golf
4. Great Yarmouth - Windmill Theatre Indoor Crazy Golf
5. Margate (Cliftonville) - Little Oasis Crazy Golf
6. Newquay - Mini Golf
7. Letoonia Golf Resort, Belek, Turkey - Minigolf
8. Mundesley - Adventure Island Golf
9. Ladram Bay - Crazy Golf
10. Majorca (Vista Alegre, Porto Cristo, Mallorca) - Minigolf
11. Sirmione, Lake Garda, Italy - Minigolf
12. Gorleston-on-Sea (Pop's Meadow) - Crazy Golf
13. Amsterdam - GlowGolf
14. Remich, Luxembourg - Eternit Miniature Golf
15. Nittel, Germany - Minigolf
16. Zeltingen-Rachtig, Germany - Beton Minigolf
17. Traben-Trarbach, Germany - Eternit Miniature Golf
18. Kobern-Gondorf, Germany - Abenteuergolf
19. Kobern-Gondorf, Germany - Eternit Miniature Golf
20. Bernkastel-Kues, Germany - Minigolf
21. Ville de Sète, France - Mini Golf - now a skatepark
22. Lac de la Cavayère, Carcassonne, France - Mini Golf - only open in July and August
23. Bali Mini Golf and Luwak Coffee Garden, Indonesia - Mini Golf

Related blog posts:
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour
- Christopher Gottfried
- Guest Blog Posts

Link:
- Bali Mini Golf

Hitting another milestone on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

We've recently had a cracking weekend away and visited seven new minigolf courses, playing six of them as one had closed down.

Our mini-roadtrip took us to Newcastle Upon Tyne, Hartlepool, Saltburn-by-the-Sea, Skelton-in-Cleveland and Seaton Carew.

We've now been to 846 courses overall, 808 in the British Isles and played 500 of them.

At Saltburn Minigolf course

The latest additions to our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour visited list are:

• 495 (840) Newcastle (Lane7) - Mini Golf
• 496 (841) Newcastle (Mr Mulligan's Space Golf) - Inventors Hangar
• 497 (842) Newcastle (Mr Mulligan's Space Golf) - Lunar Crash
• 498 (843) Newcastle (Mr Mulligan's Space Golf) - Cosmic Storm
• 499 (844) Saltburn-by-the-Sea - Saltburn Minigolf
• 500 course played (845th visited overall and the 807th we've been to in the British Isles) Skelton-in-Cleveland - Holey Molies Miniature Golf
• 846 Seaton Carew (The Golf Dome) - Golf Trail Mini Golf - closed down

More photos and videos to follow here on the blog and on our social media accounts.

Mario mini market in Levenshulme

Spotting Super Mario at a European food store in Levenshulme, Manchester.

While having a wander along the Stockport Road in Levenshulme we spotted Super Mario on the sign for a mini market!

In August we spotted Mario's takeway in Blackpool. That place also had Luigi on the window.

Related blog posts:
- Bootleg
- Mario
- Super Mario