Minigolf at Leopoldpark in Blankenberge, Belgium

A visit to Leopoldpark in Blankenberge, Belgium.

Emily visited three courses and a new country on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour when she went to Blankenberge, Belgium back in 2016

What a sight for minigolf fans

The seaside resort is home to a Minigolf course, a Crazy Golf and a Snookergolf layout. The three 18-hole courses at Leopoldpark became the 710th, 711th and 712th visited on the tour.

Since 2006 Emily and I have visited 1,045 miniature golf courses around the UK and overseas on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. As well as playing minigolf in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Jersey and the Isle of Man we’ve travelled to minigolf courses in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Finland, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Poland, Singapore, Spain (Lanzarote and Majorca), Sweden and the USA.

The Minigolf course (left) and Crazy Golf course (right) at Leopoldpark

Photos of the Minigolf course at Leopoldpark, Blankenberge.

Photos of the Crazy Golf course at Leopoldpark, Blankenberge.

Photos of the Snookergolf Billiards course at Leopoldpark, Blankenberge.

We've got some great old postcards from Blankenberge that show the miniature golf courses which used to be at Leopoldpark. It's great to know there are still courses on the same spot today.

The whole place looks marvelously bright and colourful.

The Petanque terrain at Leopoldpark in Blankenberge

Visit the Leopoldpark website for more information.

A 2016 Carl Carmoni Mini-putt Trading Card

A look at a Carl Carmoni Mini-putt Trading Card from 2016.

Being stuck at home during lockdown I've had a bit more time to look back through my minigolf collection and the Crazy Golf Museum's vaults.

One of the nice items to share is this Carl Carmoni Mini-putt Trading Card from 2016.

Signed by the legend himself

Mini-putt courses are similar in appearance to Putt-Putt courses however they have distinct standardised hole designs and are particular to Canada.

"Mini-putt" is the Québécois term for the game of minigolf, thanks largely to the popularity of the Quebec cable sports show 'Défi Mini-putt' (Mini-putt Challenge) in the 1970s and 80s.

Check out a compilation of hole-in-ones Carl Carmoni scored on the Défi Mini-putt show.

We haven't played the Mini-putt format of the game yet. We're looking forward to a trip to Quebec in the future. It'd be ace to meet Carl and play in a tournament there.

With the great Mini-putt merch in 2016

Emily wearing a Mini-putt t-shirt

Carl Carmoni is a player after my own heart as he reacts with a triumphant shout of "BIRDIE!" every time he hits an ace. I'm known to shout "YEE-HA!" when I score a hole-in-one in competition play.

Check out Carl Carmoni's website and Mini-putt for more information.

My friend, minigolf team-mate and rival Jon Drexler also has a trading card. You can see that card in my blog post from 2013.

Links:
- Carl Carmoni
- Mini-putt
- Richard & Emily Gottfrid at Mini-putt

2016 - what a year

A look at a minigolf calendar from 2016.

During lockdown I've been looking through the archives and vaults of the Crazy Golf Museum and one of the things I found was this signed Matt "Mattie 5" Bellner calendar from 2016.

What an item!

What a year!

Matt is a professional Putt-Putt player and a member of the US national minigolf team. Check out the Mattie 5 website for more information.

If you had a time machine would you go back in time or forwards into the future?