Basingstoke Golf Centre - New Mini Golf courses played on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

Visit to the new 9-hole Minigolf course at Basingstoke Golf Centre and results of Minigolf Challenge Matches.

A view of the new 9-hole Minigolf course at Basingstoke Golf Centre

On Sunday 25th March Emily and I visited and played the 283rd and 284th Miniature Golf courses on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour at the Open Day Launch of a new Mini Golf course at Basingstoke Golf Centre in Hampshire. The weather for the day out playing minigolf could not have been better.

In our first round on the new 9-hole course I defeated Emily by two shots with a score of 19(+1) to her 21(+3).

Emily plays Hole 4

In our next round we were joined by fellow GB international and two-time World Crazy Golf Champion Chris Harding. Chris scored a 16(-2), I had a 17(-1) and Emily hit a 19(+1).

At the event there were also two challenge matches, the first saw me, Emily, Chris and Basingstoke Golf Centre’s PGA Golf Professional Tony Cook play a one-round, 9-hole contest.

In the match Emily was the outright leader for the first seven holes, before Chris and I scored an ace each. This left a three-way tie for the lead with two to play. On hole eight I scored a two, while the other players each took a three. On the ninth Chris and I were both close to getting a hole-in-one but took twos, while Emily and Tony scored threes, meaning that I took the win. The scores from the match were:

- Richard Gottfried - 16(-2)

- Chris Harding - 17(-1)

- Emily Gottfried - 18(par)

- Tony Cook* - 22(+4)

* Tony is the course record holder, having previously scored a round of 14(-4)

From l-r Tony Cook, Richard Gottfried, Emily Gottfried & Chris Harding

In the team contest two teams of three players, led by me and Chris Harding, faced-off in a closely fought cumulative score strokeplay event. The players were selected by each of the team captains. I got first pick having upset Chris with a shock victory in a (best-of-3) Rock Paper Scissors match!

I play a shot on hole 2 - I scored an ace!

On my team were Jon Angel and Danny Angel from the Great Britain Minigolf Team sponsors UrbanCrazy, with Chris’ team containing David McConnachie and Steve Gorton.

Team UrbanCrazy - Danny, Jon and Richard

Team Invincible - Chris, David and Scott

Me and Chris play Rock Paper Scissors to decide who gets the first pick of the players in the team challenge

My team won the challenge match with a total of 62(+8), with Chris’ team hitting 64(+10). The match was very back and forth, with the teams tying on a number of holes too. The final hole to be played - hole 5 - is probably the toughest on the course, so there was a nervy finish to the match.

I was once again the lowest scoring player, this time with a round of 18(par). Chris Harding and David McConnachie tied for second on 19(+1). Jon Angel scored a 21(+3), with Danny Angel on 23(+5) and Steve Gorton on 26(+8).

Playing hole 9 of the Mini Golf course during the team match

Chris, Emily and I also had one final friendly round on the course, with me and Chris both shooting a 16(-2) and Emily hitting a 24(+6).

The Mini Golf course at Basingstoke Golf Centre was designed and built by UrbanCrazy – the sponsors of the Great Britain Minigolf Team. Photos of the course are below:

Hole 1

Hole 2 and the Putting Course in the background

Hole 2

Hole 3

Hole 4

Hole 5 - a nasty dog leg left!

Hole 6

Hole 7 - a very short, but tricky hole

Hole 8

Hole 8

Hole 9

Hole 9

A view of holes 7, 8 & 9

The five-hole minigolf practice area

We also took the opportunity to test our Putting skills on the 8-hole Putting Green at the centre. Chris and I faced-off in a challenge match, with Chris getting the upper-hand and winning with a score of 19(+3) to my 20(+4).

I play hole 1 on the Putting Green

Chris on the Putting Green

The two courses were the first new ones to be visited and played on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour in 2012 and the first since #282 at London’s Alexandra Palace back in December 2011.

Next stop... who knows where...!

Links:

- Basingstoke Golf Centre

- UrbanCrazy
- Photo of GB players on Heart Berkshire

Related Blog Posts:

- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

- No Crazy Golf at Eastrop Park in Basingstoke

Bar Billiards in Baldock & Knebworth

Playing Bar Billiards at two pubs in Hertfordshire.

On Saturday 11th February 2012 me and two friends visited a couple of pubs in Hertfordshire for a few games of Bar Billiards.

Having rung round the pubs in Herts & Beds that are listed on the AEBBA map of Bar Billiards tables earlier in the day I had found out that The Red Lion in Studham, Beds no longer has a table. Nor does the Bedford Arms in Hitchin, having changed to a standard Pool table. We'd also found The Bucks Head pub in Little Wymondley has also removed their Bar Billiards table, but does offer free Dominoes, Cards and Cribbage to customers.

I did find that The Chequers Inn at Knebworth still had a table and I'd heard via twitter that The Orange Tree in Baldock also had one, so off we headed.



The Bar Billiards table at The Orange Tree in Baldock

First up was a visit to The Orange Tree, where we spotted the table positioned in the 'public bar', quite nicely near to a real log fire to keep punters and players warm. After a quick run through of the rules I took on Simon in a game.



The Orange Tree Bar Billiards Rules

To decide who would break we played a hand of Rock Paper Scissors. I lost.



Simon 'Practice' Hall takes a shot

Simon may have won the break, but when the match came to the closing stages the score was 800 to nil, with Simon having wiped out his score by knocking down the dreaded black peg! He did however manage to score 200 points by sinking the last white ball to make the result 800-200.


Lining up a shot

As the table at The Orange Tree was positioned against a wall/under a window it was only possible to play shots at the 200 & 100 holes from the left hand side of the table. Not a major obstacle really. I did like the fact that there were three sizes of cue available to use. As the pub was busy and there was a door behind the baulk line end I opted to use the 'baby' cue which was only about two and a half foot long.

Having had two games at The Orange Tree we decided to head over to Knebworth and The Chequers Inn for a game or two.

When I had phoned ahead earlier in the day the man at the pub had confirmed they still had a table and said that the baize on it had been relaid. The table did look and play nicely indeed, with the balls rolling very smoothly indeed. But unfortunately in the second game a lot of the balls kept getting 'stuck' in the pockets after being potted!? This meant for much of our second 'three-way-dance' match we were not playing with a full deck!

Simon picked up wins at The Chequers Inn. Both games once again went to a shootout on the 200 hole.

Interestingly the table at The Chequers Inn had a different layout to the table in The Orange Tree and was also different to the only other table I'd actually played, at The Strathmore Arms in St Paul's Walden. Both of those tables had three obstacles (one with 'mushrooms' the other with 'pegs'), but the table at The Chequers Inn had four mushrooms, with one guarding the 200 hole, one at the 100 hole (which was not marked as a scoring hole) and the other two were in front of each of the 50 holes. It certainly made the table a lot harder to score points on. The positioning of the table at The Chequers Inn also meant that shots at the 200 hole in the last ball shootout could only be made from the right hand side of the table.



The Bar Billiards table at The Chequers Inn at Knebworth - this one had four spots and four 'mushrooms'! Shooting for the 50s was very difficult

There was a nice old rules sheet/poster on display next to the table at The Chequers Inn. it was originally revised in 1973 and reprinted in 1976 and described "The Game of Bar Billiards - sometimes called Russian Bagatelle, Skittle Billiards or Snookerette etc."

This rule sheet had the rules laid out for playing the game using the 'first arrangement' and 'second arrangement' and it was this second type of rules the table had been set up for, with the previously mentioned four peg/skittle marks. There was also a good section on the sheet on 'How to Promote Interest' in the game.

The nice old Bar Billiards rule sheet at The Chequers Inn

An enjoyable day out at two different pubs, playing a fun and very tricky game. On an incredibly cold day it was nice to be in two very warm pubs.

Related Blog Posts:
- Another new game played – Bar Billiards
- Snow causes blog post in Guildford

Link:
- The All England Bar Billiards Association
- The AEBBA Rules of Bar Billiards

Minigolf and Crazy Golf courses in Pub Beer Gardens

Details of Pub Miniature Golf courses we've found on our travels

On our travels around the UK we've found Minigolf and Crazy Golf courses at a few Pubs along the way. Though not as many as we'd have liked!

Here are the links to the Pub Miniature Golf courses we've visited and played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour to date:

#10 Horse & Harrow Pub, West Hagbourne, Oxfordshire - Crazy Golf - Re-visited 2011

One of the holes at The Horse & Harrow Pub Crazy Golf in 2006

#11 The Green Man Pub, Stanford, Bedfordshire - Crazy Golf

A view of the now long-gone Crazy Golf course at The Green Man Pub

#110 Tudor Rose Inn, Fordingbridge, Hampshire - Miniature Golf - Update: October 2012 - the beer garden has had a makeover and the course is no longer there.

Playing a hole on the very good Miniature Golf course at The Tudor Rose Inn

#168 Maldon Grey Pub, Sudbury, Suffolk - Crazy Golf

A double-humped hole at The Maldon Grey Pub in Sudbury

#249 The Sutton Staithe Hotel, near Stalham, Norfolk - Moosey's Miniature Golf

Playing on the course in the beer garden of The Sutton Staithe Hotel

- The Pitch & Putt Inn - North Shore Holiday Centre, Skegness, Lincolnshire - Pitch & Putt Course (did not play) and a Miniature Golf Course (#233)

- Not played (visit #223 overall) - The Dolphin Pub, Melbourn, Cambridgeshire - Derelict 4-hole Crazy Golf - Re-visit 2011

- Not played (Pub under reconstruction) - Aber Falls Tavern, Abergwyngregyn, Wales - Crazy Golf

- Not played (too early, Pub not open) - The Woolpack Inn, Smeeth, Kent - Crazy Golf

- Not played (no course there any more) - The Bell Pub, Wendens Ambo, Saffron Walden, Essex - Mini Golf

- Not played (hotel guests only) - The Portobello Gold Pub & Hotel, London - Mini Golf on a Roof Terrace

- A visit to the Smallest Pub on the Planet - now has a Mini-Minigolf Course in the 'Games Area' - see "A Miniature Golf course at the Smallest Pub on the Planet"

In June 2011 Uncle Stuart's Brewery at Wroxham Barns in Norfolk brewed a special commemorative beer for the BMGA English Open - it was called the 19th Hole!

In February 2016 we played the Plonk Golf course in the beer garden at the Duke of Edinburgh pub in Brixton, London.

Link to other courses we've visited and played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Looking at the course lists on the excellent MiniatureGolfer.com website there are a few other Pub courses in England too.

Our friends at The Putting Penguin in the USA have also played some Mini-Golf courses in pubs and have set up courses at the Cambridge House Brew Pub in Connecticut!

Other Pub-related Blog Posts on The Ham & Egger Files:

- 2011 UK Thumb Wrestling Championships at The Triangle Tavern in Lowestoft, Suffolk

- 2011 UK Rock Paper Scissors Championships at The Knights Templar Pub on Chancery Lane, London

- 2010 UK Rock Paper Scissors Championships at The Durell Arms Pub in Fulham, London

- Darts in London - The Jolly Anglers Pub in Wood Green, London

- Another new game played – Bar Billiards

Minigolf at Watford TopGolf - Major Course Improvements & Match vs. 'Rowdy' Russell Fenner

On Wednesday 23rd November 2011 I met up with old Dodgeball UK adversary 'Rowdy' Russell Fenner for a long-awaited rematch at the 18-hole Adventure Golf course at Watford TopGolf.

I've been visiting the course at TopGolf Watford since the 2nd of December 2006, when the course became the 8th ever played on me and Emily's Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. On this latest visit the first thing I noticed (after seeing the price increase to £6 a round) was the amount of changes and improvements that had been made to the course!

Photo: The 'Rocky Pines' Canoe beside the 2-hole practice Putting area

The last time I played there was in March this year, when the course had had some extra changes made to it. At the time it wasn't in the best condition (the 18th hole being particularly horrible, especially when compared to how it used to be - a well placed shot between two rocks would reward you with a hole-in-one more often than not. See here for a photo of how it looked during the changes in July 2010). However, the new modifications have made the course the most playable it has been since our first visits back in 2006, 2007 & 2008!

As well as new obstacles, the felt has been completely relaid so there are no patches or tears. Each hole has also had a sign put up and they all now carry names.

Photo: Hole 1 "Canoe Canyon"

In July 2010 I played the Watford Adventure Golf course three times and on each visit the course was different! The first of those visits on the 7th saw the course a little worn in places, but quite playable. On my visit on the 13th a lot of pieces of felt were missing!? Most noticeably on the tee-off areas! Instead of felt the area was bare concrete. On my visit on the 22nd the finishing touches had been made to the 'refurb', with new patches of felt over worn areas, aling with new tee-off areas of felt (which play incredibly slowly). But the course was in a sorry state and not much fun compared to how it had been.

So I was very pleased to see the improvements, both in the general look of the course and in the playability of it. Some new bunkers have been added, tricky rock obstacles put in place, and some of the holes have been extended and/or widened. To play the course now is very different indeed compared to 2010 and earlier this year.

Photo: Hole 2 "Ramp Rage"

Photo: A stone circle

Photo: The addition of two parallel planks add a new way to play your shots on this hole

Photo: Hole 7 "Pine Pass" has had an interesting change made to it. It used to be a great hole-in-one opportunity, however the rocks have been changed to block the path to the hole! A bit of practice and a nicely weighted shot could see Aces still drop, but it's not as easy as it used to be

Photo: Hole 13 "Cross Paths" has also been significantly changed with the addition of a third route to the hole. My shot made it to the smaller of the two entry points to the tunnel, but was slightly too strong a shot and lipped out when it reached the hole

Photo: 'Rowdy' Russell Fenner goes fishing for his ball on Hole 14

Photo: The bridge on Hole 14 as it is now. Link to how it was in 2010

Photo: The dogleg left Hole 15 has also been changed to now include a ramp & tunnel in the corner. Using a very bouncy standard course (golf) ball meant that the shot into it was not ideal. However, using a good specialist minigolf deadball may see a better result

Photo: A view of the exit ramp on Hole 15

Photo: Hole 18 "Pipe Dream"

Photo: Hole 18 "Pipe Dream" - the central obstacle

Photo: Hole 18 "Pipe Dream" - the last hole and ball collector

Photo: Hole 18 "Pipe Dream" - a view of the exit ramp from the main obstacle

In our match-up I scored a 44(+8) including holes-in-one on the 5th and 9th holes. 'Rowdy' Russell had a poor round though and scored a disappointing 55(+19), far worse than he normally plays as he usually gives me a good run for my money!

As the course is in such fine shape and with the many improvements made to it I think it's in good enough condition to once again host a British Minigolf Association Tour competition - it was the location for the London Invitational Tournament won by Brad 'The Fist' Shepherd in August 2008.

The Watford TopGolf Game Centre is located at Bushey Mill Lane, Watford Herts, WD24 7AB and is very easy to find if you follow the many Brown Signs it has had put up in the surrounding area.

Photo: Just one of the many Brown Tourist Signs pointing potential visitors TopGolf's way

In order for 'Rowdy' Russell to attempt to gain a measure of revenge for his minigolf defeat we decided to have a game of Pool.

I broke.

And with my shot managed to pot the black in the middle left hand pocket. As well as potting a red in the top right hand corner pocket.

So 'Rowdy' left with a 'win'.

After our dismal performances in the Sportingbet.com UK RPS Championships last month we decided against having a Rock Paper Scissors contest to confirm an overall winner of the evening's activity and chose to call it a draw.

TopGolf Watford can be found on facebook and twitter. TopGolf Watford Adventure Golf details online.

Previous Blog Posts About Visits to Watford TopGolf:
- 17/03/11 - Adventure Golf at Watford TopGolf - 16th March 2011
- 09/12/10 - Adventure Golf at Watford TopGolf - change to Hole 18
- 01/08/10 - Changes to the felt and mats at Watford TopGolf
- 05/02/10 - Minigolf Challenge Matches at Watford TopGolf (& course visit updates)
- 30/10/09 - Adventure Golf at Watford TopGolf
- 21/12/08 - Results of the Third Annual Watford Classic
- 04/02/08 - WHAT

Link to more information, photos and videos of other course visits on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.