A look at the Crazy Golf course at Nelson Gardens in Great Yarmouth back in 1980.
I recently bought 50 more postcards for my collection of minigolf cards and among them was this nice old postcard showing the Crazy Golf course at Nelson Gardens in Great Yarmouth.
Nelson Gardens Great Yarmouth postcard. A Sapphire Card. Postally used on 23 July 1980
New Crazy Golf course at Fakenham Fairways in Norfolk.
There's a new Crazy Golf course under construction at Fakenham Fairways in Fakenham, Norfolk. The latest addition to the camping and golf site will join the Pitch & Putt course and Driving Range.We're looking forward to a game there on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour when we're next in Norfolk.
We had a brilliant time in Norwich last weekend and it was a nice surprise to find a Bar Billiards table to have a game on too.
We're big fans of the traditional pub sport and the tables can often take some hunting out.
The four-pin layout of the pegs is a tough variation on the three-pin game
The table at the Golden Star pub used the four-pin set-up, a variation on the rules that makes the game trickier to play as two of the pegs/mushrooms partially block the 'easy route' into the 50-pockets.
It's a neat set-up at the Golden Star
The table had some nice features, including the cue holders at the baulk end.
I really like the cue holders built into the end of the table
It was a very old table owned by Alfred Sams & Sons of Hoddesdon, Herts. We hadn't seen that particular badge on other tables we've played on our travels.
Some lovely old design and features
An old National Bar Billiards Association badge
In our game (played using three-pins) I won with a score of 980 to Emily's 0. Emily had knocked down the black peg with her shot at the 200-hole to wipeout her tally of 510.
Emily in action
The final score
Emily going for it on the final black mushroom shot
The Golden Star is worth a visit and the Bar Billiards table there is well worth a play. It's only 50p a game too.
The Golden Star pub - you'll find the Bar Billiards table at the back of the pub, by the blue door on the left hand side of the photo
It's great to know that the pub plays host to competitive events as part of the Norwich Bar Billiards League too. Check out the links below for more info.
The Crazy Golf course at Pops Meadow in Gorleston on Sea became the 100th course visited when we swung by on the 10th May 2009
As of today we've visited 749 courses since September 2006. Of these 721 have been in the UK, with 28 overseas in eleven countries. There are approximately 40 courses in Norfolk and we have visited 32 courses of these so far. Twelve were closed / out of season at the time of our visit. Over the years we have visited eight courses in Great Yarmouth - some of which are no longer there.
At the Adventure Island Golf Course in Mundesley
With a Humpty at Merrivale Model Village in Great Yarmouth
Playing Crazy Golf at Eaton Park in Norwich
Playing one of the partially outdoors holes at the indoor Crazy Golf course found within the old Windmill Theatre in Great Yarmouth
At Lost World Adventure Golf in Hemsby
Putting in Cromer
Playing Crazy Golf in Hunstanton
Courses played since our first visit to Norfolk in 2007:
Visiting two new Adventure Golf courses in East Anglia
While recently visiting friends and family in East Anglia we headed along to two relatively new Mini Golf courses. Both are Congo Rapids Adventure Golf layouts, with one at Norwich Family Golf Centre in Norfolk and the other at Ufford Park Hotel in Melton, near Woodbridge in Suffolk.
A cannibal's BIG cooking pot at the Ufford Park course
Unfortunately the weather and time wasn't on our side in either visit, however both courses looked really good and there were a number of obstacles and features we hadn't seen before.
The BIG minigolf cave at Norwich Family Golf Centre
Congo Rapids Adventure Golf in Norwich was the 732nd course we've visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour, while Congo Rapids Adventure Golf in Woodbridge became the 736th course visited since 2006.
A giant panda 'green' on one of the holes in Woodbridge
The park is fairly near to the wonderful Eaton Park. Well worth a visit and also home to a number of benches. As well as a Crazy Golf course, Grass Putting, a Miniature Railway and a marvellous pavilion and bandstand.
Last Friday we visited the wonderful Eaton Park in Norwich. After we'd played the superb Crazy Golf course we went for a look at the Miniature Railway. It looked like a brilliant layout.
Another miniature railway visited on our travels
Eaton Park's Miniature Railway comprises two tracks - an elevated track and a longer ground level track.
The elevated track on the Larch End loop above the line out of Parkside station
Subject to weather conditions the miniature trains operate every Sunday and Bank Holiday Monday between 1 and 5pm (April to October).
The ground level track cutting through a park pathway
A view of Parkside station, a signal box and a tunnel
The turntable at Parkside station
Larch End station on the elevated track line
Hopefully next time we visit Eaton Park we'll be there on a day the miniature railway is open.
The weather hadn't been great in the morning so we weren't sure if the courses would be open. As we parked up we noticed a sign on the side of the kiosk, thankfully it said 'Open'!
After collecting our putters, balls, scorecard and pencil from the man in the hut we hit the 18-hole course for a great, fun round of minigolf.
It was a close contest, but a disastrous five on the 17th did me in to gift Emily the victory with a 43 to 44 scoreline.
After our first round the man (Rob) was eager to hear our scores and was impressed we'd shot fairly low scores. Rob told us the course record stood at 36. If we'd played a few more rounds we could've got close and maybe even beaten it. The first three holes are great ace opportunities, although there are some holes you really need to concentrate on or else you could pick up a four or five.
As the course was so good we had a second round and this time tied on 40 shots apiece. Although that did mean Emily won by one-shot overall.
While we didn't have time to play the Putting course this time, we will head back for a round in the future.
The Crazy Golf course was the 432nd played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. The layout was the 734th visited overall and the 707th we've been to in the UK.
Eaton Park Crazy Golf has the right mix of hole-in-one opportunities and tricky second putts. The skill-based layout was unique and well maintained, with each of the holes presenting a different challenge. It's one of those courses I could happily play all day long.
Check out the photos below to view the 18-hole Crazy Golf course and visit the Eaton Park Crazy Golf website for more info, opening times and prices.
Hole 1
Hole 2
Hole 3
Hole 4
Hole 5
Hole 6
Hole 6
Hole 7
Hole 7
Hole 8
Hole 9
Hole 9
Hole 10
Hole 11
Hole 12
Hole 12
Hole 13
Hole 14
Hole 14
Hole 15
Hole 16
Hole 17
Hole 18
Eaton Park itself is a large heritage park and is also home to a pitch & putt course, a miniature railway, cafe, bandstand, gardens and a very impressive pavilion.
