A look back at The Brewmaster's Open minigolf tournament at the Camden Town Brewery in London.
We competed in The Brewmaster's Open at the Camden Town Brewery eight years ago today. It was part of the brilliant summer of sport in the capital.
Ready to compete
It was a superb event played on a portable 5-hole minigolf course from UrbanCrazy set up in a brewery! More than 200 players competed in the tournament.
Playing hole 1
The scorecards were some of the best I've ever seen.
Beermat scorecards!
It was a marvellous day out.
Taking a 'refreshment break' at the Camden Town Brewery during The Brewmaster's Open tournament
Christopher Gottfried playing in The Brewmaster's Open at the Camden Town Brewery in London as Emily and Simon Hall look on
Hole 1
Inside the brewery miniature golf course
Alan Norman teeing-off the competition
Alan 'Stormin' Norman won The Brewmaster's Open with his round of 8. I finished in tied 2nd place alongside Seth Thomas.
A look at the Crazy Golf course at The Olde Watermill Shopping Village in Barton-Le-Clay, Bedfordshire.
My friend and sometimes minigolf opponent Simon 'Practice' Hall was recently at The Olde Watermill Shopping Village in Barton-Le-Clay, Bedfordshire and spotted a poster for a Crazy Golf course there.
He sent over this snap of the layout.
We used to visit The Olde Watermill Shopping Village when we lived in nearby Luton. Typical that there's a course there now we've moved away.
There's a lot of debate as to which is the smallest pub in Britain/the UK/the planet. On our travels we've been to The Signal Box Inn at the end of the Cleethorpes Light Railway in Lincolnshire (the smallest pub on the planet) and more recently to the Lakeside Inn at Southport (the smallest pub in Britain).
Well, to add to the mix there's a very very very tiny pub in Stockport's Market Hall - The Corner Bar.
Emily and a visiting Simon Hall at a very small bar indeed. It was well stocked with draught and bottled beer and cider
A few weeks ago Emily and I enjoyed an amble around Stockport town centre and checked out a few of the pubs there too. Walking from the market hall towards the Underbank we noticed a wooden door above the ground and a plaque above that.
The plaque described how the building had once been the town's Court Leet - the magistrates court of its time - and the door was the entrance and exit to a dungeon!
Last weekend we were enjoying another walk around our new local town, this time with our friend Simon who had just arrived for a weekend stay with us. We walked up Mealhouse Brow to show him the dungeon door and plaque as it was an interesting bit of history. And while we were at the spot we were offered a tour of it! We didn't realise that was a thing - but the Stockport Heritage Trust look after the building and the building is open for tours.
Free tour if your dare! Well worth a visit though
In a way we wish we hadn't gone in, as the dungeon itself has to be see to be believed! The outer door we had seen was the way in to the 'drunk tank' dungeon - itself a pretty squalid cell. But the dungeon of the Court Leet was far more horrifying than that.
The view of the drunk tank cell - seen from a hole in the court leet cell. I think I'd rather have just been given a tour of the dungeon with the door!
Even so, for anyone interested in social history, and the history of Stockport, Mealhouse Brow is well worth a visit. Just be prepared to hear from the knowledgeable volunteer from Stockport Heritage Trust about the conditions prisoners were kept in!
Visit the Stockport Heritage Trust website and blog for more information and details of the Stockport Heritage Trail.
A visit to Mr Mulligan's latest Adventure Golf course.
You can't miss the entrance to the Lost World Golf!
Last year we heard about a new minigolf venue opening in Stevenage and Mr Mulligan's latest course - Lost World Golf - opened at Stevenage Leisure Park earlier this year.
Mr Mulligan's Lost World Golf gets the thumbs up from the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour
We've been itching to get along for a game and earlier this week we had a round on the two nautical themed courses. We loved it.
Our crew of adventure golfers in Stevenage
The courses became the 685th and 686th visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour, and were the 403rd and 404th played.
A view of the Jungle course
The 16th hole in the Jungle
Our group hit the Jungle Explorers course for round one and followed this with a game on the Ocean Adventurers layout.
Emily on the 15th about to putt to the ground floor green
There is some excellent theming throughout the indoor Adventure Golf venue - not least the giant wooden submarine that sits in the middle of the two courses!
Local competitor Simon Hinton and the wooden submarine
What an obstacle/hole/feature!
The inside of the submarine contains a very very tough hole to play!
There's a real mix of obstacles and hole types and there's even a section of holes where you are plunged into blacklight - one of my favourite types of minigolf environments to play in.
The blacklight area on the Ocean Adventurers course
A glow in the dark octopus
Meeting Mr Mulligan
Emily putting under the sea
As we're super competitive players we made sure we kept score and the results of our contest are below - it was very close indeed!
Round 1 - Jungle Explorers Championship
1st - Simon 'Local Athlete' Hinton - 45
2nd (tied) - Cat 'Helter Skelter' Patterson - 46
2nd (tied) - 'Squire' Richard Gottfried - 46
4th - Emily 'Lemony' Gottfried - 51
5th - Simon 'Practice' Hall - 52
6th - 'First Game' Salimeh - 71
Round 2 - Ocean Adventurers Championship
1st - 'Squire' Richard Gottfried - 47
2nd - Emily 'Lemony' Gottfried - 51
3rd - Simon 'Local Athlete' Hinton - 52
4th - Cat 'Helter Skelter' Patterson - 56
A Minigolf re-visit - this time with a Putter and Minigolf Balls!
After competing in The Brewmaster's Open at the Camden Town Brewery we still had an appetite for some more Minigolf and as Alan 'Stormin' Norman had brought his kitbag along it meant we were able to play the Crazy Golf course at Clarence Wayon the Castlehaven Estate in Camden, London!
I've been to the course a number of times before and only seen people on it a couple of times.
We decided that in our contest we'd have a Doubles Match between me and Simon 'Practice' Hall - as the Luton Minigolf Club - versus Seth 'Clockwork Orange' Thomas and Alan 'Stormin' Norman - the London Minigolfers.
To decide which team would tee-off first the team captains had a game of Rock Paper Scissors - I won!!!
The Minigolfers and the Minigolf Putter. From l-r Simon 'Practice' Hall, 'Squire' Richard Gottfried, Alan 'Stormin' Norman, Seth 'Clockwork Orange' Thomas
Using Alan's Minigolf Putter and one ball that was accurately 'tested'* on hole one I teed-off and scored a two. Simon stepped up and also scored a two. The Thomas-Norman tandem also scored four as a team to tie the hole.
* the practice involved throwing a Ravensburg Minigolf Ball down the lane of hole one - it went in for an ace!!!
Alan 'Stormin' Norman in action
The London Minigolfers took the lead on hole two, scoring a four, with me and Simon scoring a five. The team went two-up at the fourth hole, before Simon and I won back a hole at the fifth.
Playing the Cannon Hole
With our team needing to win the hole at the eighth to keep the match alive our team scored a five, following Seth's hole-in-one and Alan's two for their team score of three. I actually managed to get the ball in the hole with my tee-shot, unfortunately it wasn't the first shot! See the 'Caption competition' photo below.
The 'Pro' and 'Semi-Pro' Minigolfers at the entrance to The Brewmaster’s Open Mini Golf course. from l-r 'Squire' Richard Gottfried, Christopher 'Beya' Gottfried, Alan 'Stormin' Norman (seated on barrell), Emily 'Lemony' Gottfried, Seth 'Clockwork Orange' Thomas, Simon 'Practice' Hall
The Brewmaster’s Open tournament was played on an UrbanCrazy Miniature Golf course that had been built inside the Camden Town Brewery. Players had to putt around Beer Keg obstacles placed over the 5-hole layout.
Over 200 players competed during the event, with the best score of the day being a round of 8(-2) by London’s Alan Norman to take the first prize of “A lot of Camden Town Brewery’s Beer!” Richard Gottfried finished in tied second place with London’s Seth Thomas after both players had scored a round of 9(-1).
Richard Gottfried lines-up a Putt on hole 1 at The Brewmaster's Open - he would 'Ace' the hole in each round
As well as the overall leaderboard competition six British Minigolf Association (BMGA) Tour Pro players competed in a three-round contest. Alan Norman stormed to victory with a total of 28(-2), with Seth Thomas runner-up with 30(par). Richard Gottfried took third place with a total of 31(+1) following rounds of 10, 9 and 12.
The top-3 'Pro' players at The Brewmaster's Open - from l-r 'Squire' Richard Gottfried (3rd), Alan 'Stormin' Norman (1st), Seth 'Clockwork Orange' Thomas (2nd)
Richard Gottfried said “The Brewmaster’s Open was one of the strangest Minigolf events I’ve played in. The course was really nice to play and the hospitality of the organisers at the Camden Town Brewery was top notch. My third round was a bit shaky which put paid to my chances of winning, but I had a great time at the competition.”
The 'Pro' & 'Semi-Pro' Minigolfers during a rest break at the Camden Town Brewery Brewmaster's Open tournament
Simon Hall was making his Minigolf competition debut and finished in tied third place on the overall leaderboard with his best round of 10(par). In the ‘Pro’ contest he was tied for fifth with Emily Gottfried. Southsea’s Christopher Gottfried was fourth with a score of 35(+5).
Christopher Gottfried plays hole 5 at The Brewmaster’s Open
Simon Hall said “What a crazy introduction to a Minigolf competition! Who knew you could organise a Minigolf Competition in a Brewery.”
.JPG "The 'Pro' and 'Semi-Pro' Minigolfers at the entrance to The Brewmaster’s Open Mini Golf course")
.JPG "Richard Gottfried lines-up a Putt on hole 1 at The Brewmaster's Open")
.JPG "The top-3 'Pro' players at The Brewmaster's Open - from l-r 'Squire' Richard Gottfried (3rd), Alan 'Stormin' Norman (1st), Seth 'Clockwork Orange' Thomas (2nd)")
.JPG "The 'Pro' & 'Semi-Pro' Minigolfers at the Camden Town Brewery Brewmaster's Open tournament yesterday. Photograph taken during the 'rest' break between rounds 2 & 3 *hic*")
.JPG "Christopher Gottfried plays hole 5 at The Brewmaster’s Open")