Minigolf did you knows...?

Did you know these things about minigolf?

• The world's first miniature golf course was set-up at St Andrews, Scotland in 1867.
• James Barber opened the first minigolf course in the USA in 1916. The 'Lilliputian' miniature golf course was called 'Thistle Dhu' and located in Pinehurst, North Carolina.
• A Miniature Golf contest was part of the Olympic Games at the 1904 St Louis Games in the USA.
• Crazy Golf is 100 years old in 2025. The first course using the name 'Crazy Golf' opened on South Parade in Skegness, Lincolnshire, England in 1926.
• 1926 also saw the first artificial miniature golf course open in the USA. Garnet Carter opened the 'Tom Thumb' miniature golf course near Lookout Mountain in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
• The first National Tom Thumb Golf Championship took place on the 23rd October 1930.
• The first Putt-Putt brand miniature golf course was set-up by Don Clayton in Fayetteville, North Carolina, USA in 1954.
• There are several Guinness World Records for achievements in Minigolf, Miniature Golf, Crazy Golf, Adventure Golf, and Putt-Putt. The 2024 edition of the Guinness World Records book featured a whole page about minigolf and you can find details of the records on the Guinness World Records website.
• There are approximately 1,400 miniature golf courses in the British Isles.
• Our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour is 20 years old in 2026! In that time we've visited over 1,000 courses.
• The Crazy Golf Museum is 16 years old in 2026. The virtual online museum is a treasure trove and archive for all things related to minigolf, crazy golf, adventure golf, miniature golf, Putt Putt, and putting.
• There are two 'miniature golf days' each year.
• 'National Miniature Golf Day' is always on the second Saturday in May. In 2026 that will be Saturday 9th May.
• The other minigolf day, 'Miniature Golf Day', is always on the 21st September. In 2026 the 21st falls on a Monday.

Do you have any other interesting minigolf facts or stats? If you do, get in touch and let us know what they are.

New minigolf courses in the UK

I'm always on the lookout for new minigolf courses.

I post about new places planned, in development and opening using the 'New course' tag here on the blog.

If you know of a new minigolf, crazy golf, or adventure golf course opening please do get in touch.

How many minigolf courses are there in the UK today?

As of July 2025, our research indicated there were approximately 1,436 minigolf courses around the UK (and the British Isles including Jersey, Guernsey, the Isle of Man, and other islands). This figure included public courses, as well as those at pay-to-enter attractions, holiday parks, hotels, and other 'non-standard' locations. Some of these courses were also under construction / in development. Over time some locations have also been partially or fully refurbished, while others have completely swapped out an old course for a new one in the same spot. Since our last update we've also discovered and unearthed several courses we didn't previously know about that have opened in the last year or so!

Related blog posts:

• New Minigolf Courses in the UK: Mid-Year 2025 Update.
• New minigolf courses in the UK: January 2025
• New course

'Crazy Golf' is 100 years old this year

Crazy Golf is 100 years old in 2026.

The first miniature golf course using the name 'Crazy Golf' opened on South Parade in Skegness, Lincolnshire, England in 1926.

England's first 'Crazy Golf' course opened on South Parade in Skegness in 1926 and the game is widely known by that name in the UK. Crazy Golf is seldom, if ever, used overseas except in tourist spots popular with UK holidaymakers.

Our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

In May 2015 The Original Crazy Golf course became the 363rd played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. We'd first visited the course in 2011.

This sign for The Original Crazy Golf course in Skegness was located a little further down the road and next to another adventure golf course

From a Crazy Golf course to a hotel.

The Original Crazy Golf course in Skegness had been derelict since 2018 and the site has now had a Travelodge hotel and Starbucks drive-thru built on it.

Crazy Golf postcards from the course.

Here are two minigolf postcards from our collection showing the same location.

CRAZY GOLF. SKEGNESS. A Sapphire Card. LS2225. Posted from Skegness to New Basford, Nottingham in 1972

This postcard shows the course, note the name for the games is 'Craz-e-Golf'. This is interesting to see, and a name we'd not seen before

The postcard was sent to Liverpool from Skegness on the 21st June 1977 (a Tuesday). Note the nice postcard cancellation on the card too

The first miniature golf course.

The world's first miniature golf course was set-up at St Andrews, Scotland in 1867.

The Himalayas course is the world's first miniature golf and is home to the St Andrews Ladies' Putting Club. If you visit you'll find two superb grass putting layouts there - one 18-hole course and one consisting of 9-holes.

Related blog posts:

• Crazy Golf
• The Original Crazy Golf course on South Parade in Skegness, Lincolnshire (May 2011)
• Crazy Golf history: from a minigolf course to a hotel
• Minigolf did you knows...?
• Definitions of Miniature Golf
• 100 names for Miniature Golf
• Skegness
• Lincolnshire
• Postcards

19 years ago on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

A look back at the 10th course played on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

We visited the 10th course on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour on this day 18 years ago.

On a bitterly cold 23rd December 2006 Emily, my brother Christopher and I headed along to the Horse & Harrow Pub in West Hagbourne, Oxfordshire to have a game on their beer garden Crazy Golf course.

And what a course it was - we'd not seen anything like it before! And we haven't seen anything quite like it since!

Crazy Golf at the Horse and Harrow Pub in West Hagbourne, Oxfordshire - December 2006

We visited the course again in April 2011 and while it was a bit drier, it was still a very mossy layout.

Crazy Golf at the Horse and Harrow Pub in West Hagbourne, Oxfordshire - April 2011

Little did we know back then that our interest in crazy golf would become an obsession and that we'd visit 1,114 courses over 19 years.

Together with Christopher and his family we've now been to a grand total of 1,168 courses since we all picked up a putter in Southsea on the 30th September 2006.

Mulligans Crazy Golf in Romford, Essex

Mulligans Crazy Golf is now open in Romford, Essex.

The former Bunkers! venue at The Brewery Shopping Centre in Romford, Essex has been taken over by its sister-brand Mulligans and is now open as Mulligans Crazy Golf.

Mulligans Romford is home to two indoor crazy golf courses.

The venue is also home to a range of other games and activities, including Sixes Party Cricket.

Mulligans venues.

There are 15 Mulligans minigolf venues in the UK. As well as Romford you can find Mulligans in Basildon, Birmingham, Bournemouth, Bristol, Cheltenham, Guildford, Hemel Hempstead, Milton Keynes, Newcastle, Norwich, Sidcup, Stevenage, Tonbridge and Worcester.

Find out more.

Visit the Mulligans website for more information.

Our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

We didn't get the chance to visit the venue when it was Bunkers! and so it'll still be a new course for us to visit on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

We've visited several of the Mulligans venues on our travels over the last two decades, most recently in Hemel Hempstead.

Related blog posts:

• Mulligans
• Romford
• Essex

Link:

• Mulligans Crazy Golf

Crazy Golf at Skirlington Coast holiday park

There are plans for a new crazy golf course at Skirlington Coast holiday park in the East Riding of Yorkshire.

Find out more.

Visit the Unity Holidays website for more information on Skirlington Coast holiday park.

Our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

It'll be a new course for us to visit on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Junk Yard Golf Club indoor crazy golf in Leeds

There are three indoor 9-hole crazy golf courses at the Junk Yard Golf Club venue at The Light in Leeds.

You can also find Junkyard Golf courses in Liverpool, London, Manchester, Newcastle and Oxford.

Find out more.

Visit the Junk Yard Golf website for more information.

Mini Golf at the Urban Playground in the Arndale Centre, Manchester

Putters Crazy Golf can be found at the Urban Playground in Manchester.

The Urban Playground at the Manchester Arndale Centre is home to three 9-hole indoor tech-infused Crazy Golf courses.

Find out more.

Check out the Urban Playground website for more information.

Related blog posts:

• Putters Crazy Golf at the Urban Playground in Manchester
• Arndale Centre
• Manchester
• Urban Playground

Crazy Golf at Drift Park in Rhyl, Wales

A look at the Drift Park Crazy Golf course in Rhyl, North Wales on Tuesday 2nd December 2025.

We first visited the Crazy Golf course at Drift Park in Rhyl on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour in the summer of 2009 and have revisited it several times on return trips to the seaside town.

Find out more.

Visit the Crazy Golf Rhyl Facebook Page to find out more about the course.

Related blog posts:

• Rhyl
• Crazy Golf
• Crazy World of Minigolf Tour
• Minigolf Course Visit No. 145 - Drift Park, Rhyl
• Drift Park Crazy Golf in Rhyl, Wales

Videos:

• Drift Park Crazy Golf in Rhyl, Wales
• Crazy Golf at Drift Park in Rhyl, Wales
• A look at the Crazy Golf course at Drift Park in Rhyl, Wales 1
• A look at the Crazy Golf course at Drift Park in Rhyl, Wales 2
• A look at the Crazy Golf course at Drift Park in Rhyl, Wales 3
• A look at the Crazy Golf course at Drift Park in Rhyl, Wales 4

HUKD Crazy Golf in Bury, Greater Manchester

There's Crazy Golf at HUKD Golf in Bury.

We were in Bury earlier this week and although we didn't have time for a game this time we did swing by the HUKD Golf location in the town centre.

HUKD Golf in Bury is home to two indoor 9-hole crazy golf courses. One is sports-themed, while the other is circus-themed.

Our friend Pete Campbell played at the venue last year and sent us snaps for this guest blog post.

HUKD Golf sports-themed crazy golf course in Bury

Find out more.

Check out the HUKD Golf website for more information.

Link:

• HUKD Golf

Related blog posts:

• HUKD Crazy Golf in Bury, Greater Manchester
• Bury

'Crazy Golf' is 100 years old in 2026

Date for your diary - Crazy Golf will be 100 years old in 2026.

The first miniature golf course using the name 'Crazy Golf' opened on South Parade in Skegness, Lincolnshire, England in 1926.

England's first 'Crazy Golf' course opened on South Parade in Skegness in 1926 and the game is widely known by that name in the UK. Crazy Golf is seldom, if ever, used overseas except in tourist spots popular with UK holidaymakers.

Our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

In May 2015 The Original Crazy Golf course became the 363rd played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. We'd first visited the course in 2011.

This sign for The Original Crazy Golf course in Skegness was located a little further down the road and next to another adventure golf course

From a Crazy Golf course to a hotel.

The Original Crazy Golf course in Skegness had been derelict since 2018 and the site has now had a Travelodge hotel and Starbucks drive-thru built on it.

Crazy Golf postcards from the course.

Here are two minigolf postcards from our collection showing the same location.

CRAZY GOLF. SKEGNESS. A Sapphire Card. LS2225. Posted from Skegness to New Basford, Nottingham in 1972

This postcard shows the course, note the name for the games is 'Craz-e-Golf'. This is interesting to see, and a name we'd not seen before

The postcard was sent to Liverpool from Skegness on the 21st June 1977 (a Tuesday). Note the nice postcard cancellation on the card too

The first miniature golf course.

The world's first miniature golf course was set-up at St Andrews, Scotland in 1867.

The Himalayas course is the world's first miniature golf and is home to the St Andrews Ladies' Putting Club. If you visit you'll find two superb grass putting layouts there - one 18-hole course and one consisting of 9-holes.

Related blog posts:

• Crazy Golf
• The Original Crazy Golf course on South Parade in Skegness, Lincolnshire (May 2011)
• Crazy Golf history: from a minigolf course to a hotel
• Minigolf did you knows...?
• Definitions of Miniature Golf
• 100 names for Miniature Golf
• Skegness
• Lincolnshire
• Postcards