20 for 20 - The Blackpool Pleasure Beach Open minigolf tournament

20 for 20: 20 years of our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

This month we're celebrating two decades of our crazy minigolfing adventures.

I won the Blackpool Pleasure Beach Open minigolf tournament in 2009.

I won the Blackpool Pleasure Beach Open tournament on the 5th September 2009

Related blog posts:

• 20 for 20
• Crazy World of Minigolf Tour
• Our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour is 20 years old this month

World Crazy Golf Championships 2027 in Hastings

The dates for the 2027 World Crazy Golf Championships have been announced.

The World Crazy Golf Championships 2027 in Hastings, East Sussex will take place on Friday 11th, Saturday 12th and Sunday 13th June 2027.

Emily playing in the World Crazy Golf Championships in Hastings

2027 will see the 24th edition of the World Crazy Golf Championships take place.

Playing in the World Crazy Golf Championships in Hastings

The event is held on the 18-hole outdoor Arnold Palmer Crazy Golf course at the seafront Hastings Adventure Golf complex.

Emily playing at the 2014 World Crazy Golf Championships

Playing at the 2014 World Crazy Golf Championships

The World Crazy Golf Championships began in 2003 and has been held at Hastings Adventure Golf every year, except 2020 when the event was cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The current World Crazy Golf Champion is Rocky Bullin who is enjoying his first reign as world champion.

As well as the overall World title, the three-day championships also sees titles up for grabs in competitions including team and junior events.

Playing at the 2015 World Crazy Golf Championships

Find out more about the World Crazy Golf Championships

Check out the Hastings Adventure Golf website and the World Crazy Golf Championships section.

Emily playing at the 2014 World Crazy Golf Championships

Playing in the World Crazy Golf Championships

Emily and I both made our debuts in the 2007 edition of the event back when it was known as the Virgin Money World Crazy Golf Championships. It was Emily's first ever miniature golf tournament.

Playing in the final of the 2009 World Crazy Golf Championships - I am a four-time finalist in the event

Emily and The Gommery Trophy at the 2014 World Crazy Golf Championships. Emily is a two-time winner of the trophy awarded for most holes-in-one by players who finish outside the final top 18

Janken-pon: The 2012 International Rock Paper Scissors Championships

Looking back at the 2012 International Rock Paper Scissors Championships in London.

We competed in the International Rock Paper Scissors Championships in London 14 years ago this week. How time flies!

Competitive Rock Paper Scissors draws a crowd!

We teamed up with Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and author Dave Barry and his daughter Sophie from the USA to take part in the huge event.

The San Marino Rock Paper Scissors team

More than 150 athletes from 16 teams competed in the Wacky Nation organised tournament held at the Knight’s Templar Pub on Chancery Lane in London on Thursday 9th August 2012.

As we couldn’t play as a combined 'UK-USA' team we decided to represent the plucky nation of San Marino instead.

Prior to the start of the competition I challenged football hard man Neil ‘Razor’ Ruddock to a 'friendly' Rock Paper Scissors contest to warm-up.

Clash of the titans

Needless to say I won the shootout! It was an ill-tempered clash with plenty of foul language and gamesmanship. The heated battle almost resulted in a knock-out punch too!

International Rock Paper Scissors

Matches in the Round Robin stage of the main-event were played in a ‘first to four points’ format with each player in the team taking it in turns to win a point by competing in a ‘best of three’ Rock Paper Scissors game. Our team managed to rack up a win-loss record of won four, lost one.

Before any teams could advance from our pool a play-off was required as Austria and the Lapland 'A' team had also finished with four wins and one loss!

Thankfully our team was able to win both matches to advance alongside Lapland 'A', with the Austrians sent home.

The first semi-final saw San Marino take on the Vatican City team in a ‘first to six points’ match.

Unfortunately we lost and were therefore unable to go for gold.

Sadly we just missed out on the podium, suffering defeat to Great Britain in the repechage to ultimately finish in fourth place.

The final was a battle between the might of Lapland 'A' and the Vatican City, with the Laplanders finishing on top and grabbing the gold medal.

Competitive Rock Paper Scissors

Getting to the semi-finals of the International Rock Paper Scissors Championships was the furthest I have ever reached in an RPS tournament (so far), having been knocked out in the preliminary rounds of national competitions held in 2010 and 2011.

Rock Paper Scissors tournaments around the world...

Do you know of any other Rock Paper Scissors tournaments or championships that take place in the UK or around the world?

The Brewmaster's Open minigolf tournament at the Camden Town Brewery in London

Playing crazy golf in a brewery!

The Brewmaster's Open minigolf tournament took place at the Camden Town Brewery in London on this day in 2012.

We competed in The Brewmaster's Open at the Camden Town Brewery 14 years ago today. It was part of the brilliant summer of sport in the capital.

Richard Gottfried, Christopher Gottfried, Alan Norman, Emily Gottfried, Seth Thomas and Simon Hall at The Brewmaster's Open

More than 200 players competed in the tournament on the pop-up 5-hole crazy golf course.

Richard Gottfried, Alan Norman and Seth Thomas on the podium at The Brewmaster's Open

Alan 'Stormin' Norman won The Brewmaster's Open with his round of 8. I finished in tied 2nd place alongside Seth Thomas.

The scorecards for the event

Related blog posts:

• Camden Town Brewery
• Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

Link:

• Camden Town Brewery

Paradise Island Adventure Golf Open Championship 2026

Information about the 2026 PIAG Open Championship.

The Paradise Island Adventure Golf Open Championship returns this month.

The PIAG Open tees-off on Thursday 16th July, with Paradise Island Adventure Golf courses around the UK offering players the chance to enter the event when they play a round at a PIAG course.

About the PIAG Open adventure golf championship

The PIAG Open Championship is taking place across Paradise Island Adventure Golf courses between Thursday 16th and Sunday 19th July.

Paradise Island Adventure Golf has seven venues in England and Scotland.

Find out more on the Paradise Island Adventure Golf website.

Winning the PIAG Open Championship

I won the PIAG Open Championship at the Manchester Trafford Centre venue in 2018, with Emily winning the competition in 2019.

Paradise Island Adventure Golf Open Champion 2018

Paradise Island Adventure Golf Open Champion 2019

Find your nearest Paradise Island Adventure Golf course

Visit the Paradise Island Adventure Golf website for more information on the PIAG courses in Glasgow, Cheshire Oaks, Manchester, Sheffield, Derby, Rushden Lakes and Plymouth.

Minigolf tournaments at Clambers Adventure Golf in Hastings

A look back at the 2010 BMGA Players Championships and BMGA British Open in Hastings, East Sussex.

I competed on the British Minigolf Association tour between 2007 and 2015 and many of those contests took place in the seaside town of Hastings in East Sussex.

In 2010 the BMGA Players Championships and BMGA British Open were held at Clambers Adventure Golf in White Rock Gardens (aka Planet Hastings).

I finished tied for 11th place in the 29 strong field of the BMGA Players Championships and 28th place of 56 in the BMGA British Open.

Clambers Adventure Golf is sadly now a lost course.

Where Clambers Adventure Golf sat was once a model village. After it closed it became an outdoor laser tag arena!

2026 World Crazy Golf Championships in Hastings

Good luck to the competitors in the 2026 World Crazy Golf Championships in Hastings.

The major miniature golf tournament returns for its 23rd edition from the 5th to 7th June 2026.

Richard Gottfried playing in the World Crazy Golf Championships

The World Crazy Golf Championships began in 2003 and has been held at Hastings Adventure Golf every year, except 2020 when the event was cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The current champion is Marc 'The Force' Chapman who is enjoying his fifth reign as world champion.

We both made our debuts in the 2007 edition of the event back when it was known as the Virgin Money World Crazy Golf Championships. It was Emily's first ever miniature golf tournament.

Emily Gottfried playing in the World Crazy Golf Championships

Find out more.

Visit the Hastings Adventure Golf website to find out more about the 2026 World Crazy Golf Championships.

The Minigolf Nations Cup 2008 in Tampere, Finland

We made our Great Britain minigolf team debuts at the 2008 Nations Cup of Minigolf in Tampere, Finland 18 years ago today!

Our Great Britain Minigolf team, sponsored by UrbanCrazy, finished the tournament in 13th place. In the individual rankings I finished in 51st place and Emily was 53rd.

In action at the Minigolf Nations Cup in Tampere, Finland

The 2008 Great Britain squad - Jouni Valkjarvi (coach), John 'Big Top Ted' McIver, Marion 'Mation' Homer, Sean 'Freebird' Homer, Tim 'Ace Man' Davies, Steve 'F1' Gow, Emily 'Lemony' Gottfried, Andy 'Sarge' Booth, 'Squire' Richard Gottfried

We've also played for the Great Britain national team in World Minigolf Sport Federation and European Minigolf Sport Federation tournaments in Stockholm, Sweden and Hastings, England.

The Beton Concrete Mini Golf course at the Manse RG Club in Tampere was the 50th played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. The Eternit Miniature Golf course was the 51st and the Swedish Felt Minigolf course there was the 52nd played. We've now been to 1,117 courses on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour since 2006.

The Mini Masters miniature golf competition in Manchester

Looking back at the 'Mini Masters' miniature golf tournament in Manchester.

I won the 'Mini Masters' miniature golf tournament in Manchester back on the 11th April 2009. Time certainly flies!

Mini Master

The Mini Masters was the first of two tournaments I won on the 9-hole Championship Miniature Golf course at what was then Playgolf Manchester. The second event being the Miniature Open in July 2009.

Lining up a big minigolf win

My Mini Masters scores.

I won the Mini Masters with a three round total of 81 (-24) after scoring 26, 27, and 28.

Playing a very long tee-shot over and past several obstacles!

Our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

The course was the 84th played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. Back then the course wasn't one of our local layouts as we still lived in Luton, Bedfordshire and travelled up for the events.

We've now been to 1,116 courses on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour since 2006.

Emily putting on the big miniature golf course

Championship Miniature Golf in New Brighton.

The Championship Miniature Golf course is no longer at the centre, but you can find an expanded Championship Miniature Golf layout with two 18-hole courses in New Brighton. We've played both layouts there.

The Trafford Golf Centre.

The location is no longer a Playgolf venue either. It's now known as the Trafford Golf Centre and is home to two 18-hole dinosaur adventure golf courses. I won the Dino Falls Masters Adventure Golf competition there in 2018 too! Visit the Trafford Golf Centre website for more information on the courses.

The Chrizy Golf Masters minigolf competition in Manchester

I won the Chrizy Golf Masters minigolf tournament in Manchester 13 years ago today!

The first - and to date only - Chrizy Golf Masters minigolf tournament was held on a festive-themed pop-up crazy golf course at Piccadilly Place in Manchester on the 30th November 2012.

The Chrizy Golf course was gone once the 2012 festive season was over and the building remained empty, or used for other pop-ups, until the team at Junkyard Golf made it their home for another minigolf course. That layout was there for a couple of years. They have since moved on and can be found at a permanent venue at First Street in the city.

Our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

The Chrizy Golf course was the 313th played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. We've now been to 1,111 courses since September 2006.

2026 British Minigolf Association Calendar of Events

Details of the British Minigolf Association Tour Calendar of Events for the 2026 Season.

The British Minigolf Association - the National Governing Body for the sport of minigolf in the UK - has released details of its 2026 Tour Calendar of Events.

18 events have been announced, with the Thanet Open at Lost Island in Margate, Kent teeing-off the season on the 1st February 2026. The 2026 BMGA Tour season is capped off with the British Indoor Minigolf Open at Volcano Falls in Castleford, West Yorkshire on the 29th November 2026.

Find out more

Check out the BMGA website for information about the British Minigolf Association, minigolf competitions, minigolf clubs and more.

The 2025 BMGA Tour Season.

The current BMGA Tour Season draws to a close on the 7th December with this years British Indoor Minigolf Open at Volcano Falls in Castleford.

Playing on the BMGA Tour.

Emily and I were full members of the BMGA from 2007 to 2015 and played in hundreds of minigolf, crazy golf and adventure golf tournaments around the UK during that time.

I'm a seven-time winner on the UK national minigolf circuit, including two BMGA British Club Championships in 2008 and 2015, and a four-time finalist in the World Crazy Golf Championships. Through the BMGA I represented Great Britain in Nations Cup international tournaments in Finland and Sweden in 2008 and 2011.

Emily made her debut in the 2007 Virgin Money World Crazy Golf Championships and won 'The Gommery' Aces Title at the World Crazy Golf Championships in 2014 & 2015. A two-time WMF World Adventure Golf Masters Women's Champion, Emily is also the British Women's Record Holder on the Eternit system of Miniature Golf with an 18-hole round of 24 (-12) at the Nations Cup in Stockholm in 2011.

Links:

• British Minigolf Association
• European Minigolf Sport Federation
• World Minigolf Sport Federation

Related blog posts:

• BMGA
• BMGA Tour
• British Minigolf Association
• Richard Gottfried's Minigolf Player Profile
• Emily Gottfried's Minigolf Player Profile
• In the Crazy Golf Museum - minigolf membership cards

Winning the Weymouth Mini Golf Open

I won the Weymouth Open minigolf tournament on this day in 2008.

The inaugural Weymouth Open minigolf tournament was held on the 18-hole Pirate Adventure Mini Golf course at Weymouth Sea Life Centre at Lodmoor Country Park in Weymouth, Dorset on Sunday 12th October 2008.

Weymouth Open results.

I had an excellent career record in Weymouth Open events. As well as winning the individual title in 2008, my team-mate Chris Harding and I were the Weymouth Open doubles champions in 2011.

I was also runner-up in the 2009 and 2011 events and seventh in 2010. In the 2009 tournament Kevin Moseley and I were tied after two rounds and it took 4-holes of a sudden-death play-off to separate us.

Our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

The Pirate Adventure Mini Golf course was the 77th played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. We've now been to 1,099 courses since September 2006.

Find out more about the course at Weymouth Sea Life Centre.

Visit the Weymouth Sea Life Centre website for more information on the Pirate Adventure Mini Golf course at Lodmoor Country Park.

Find out more about minigolf tournaments in the UK.

The British Minigolf Association organises several minigolf competitions each year. Visit the British Minigolf Association (BMGA) website for more information.

Find out more about minigolf tournaments around the world.

The World Minigolf Sport Federation is the world governing body for the sport of minigolf. Its national and continental member associations organise competitions around the world. Visit the World Minigolf Sport Federation (WMF) website for more information.

Related blog posts:

• Weymouth
• Competition
• Tournament
• British Minigolf Association
• Crazy World of Minigolf Tour
• Minigolf Player Profile - Richard Gottfried

Links:

• Weymouth Sea Life Centre
• British Minigolf Association

The Putt Park Annual Mini-Golf Tournament in Las Vegas, USA

A look back at The Putt Park Annual Mini-Golf Tournament in Las Vegas.

I won The Putt Park's Annual Mini-Golf Tournament in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA back in September 2011.

Playing at the Putt Park Miniature Golf in Las Vegas.

We had first played miniature golf at The Putt Park on our holiday to Las Vegas in 2010. It was the 178th course visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Playing at The Putt Park Miniature Golf course in Las Vegas

Sadly The Putt Park is no longer there. It was a brilliant 18-hole course and, at the time, the only outdoor minigolf course in Las Vegas.

Related blog posts:

• Las Vegas
• Competitions
• Tournaments
• Richard Gottfried's Minigolf Player Profile

The 2009 Blackpool Pleasure Beach Open minigolf tournament

Looking back at the 2009 Blackpool Pleasure Beach Open minigolf tournament.

I won the Blackpool Pleasure Beach Open minigolf competition 16 years ago today.

We played in the Pleasure Beach Open minigolf tournament at the Adventure Golf course in Blackpool 16 years ago today. The event was held as part of the Illuminations celebrations.

We had a cracking time in the seaside resort and to top things off I won!

The trophy for the tournament is still one of the best I've seen in the world of minigolf!

The 2009 Pleasure Beach Open minigolf tournament in Blackpool.

The second Blackpool Pleasure Beach Open minigolf tournament was played on the 12-hole Adventure Golf course. After three rounds and 36-holes I won the tournament with a score of 81, eight shots ahead of runner-up John Moore, and 17 shots ahead of third-placed Steve Gow.

My first round score of 24 also smashed the previous course record. And it's still the official course record on the layout.

I shot the course record - a 24 in the first round of the 2009 Pleasure Beach Open. However, Peter McGillivray's name and round of 25 shots has been up on the board since 2016! But I'm not bitter about it lol

Find out more about the Pleasure Beach Adventure Golf course

Visit the Pleasure Beach website for more information about the Adventure Golf course.

The Pleasure Beach Adventure Golf course in Blackpool in June 2024

Learn more about minigolf tournaments.

Check out the British Minigolf Association (BMGA) and World Minigolf Sport Federation (WMF) websites for further details about how to get started playing competitive minigolf, and information about minigolf tournaments around the world.

Our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

The Pleasure Beach Adventure Golf course was the 44th played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour when we first visited for the inaugural Pleasure Beach Open contest in 2008.

Related blog posts:

• Blackpool
• Blackpool Pleasure Beach
• Gottfried wins the 2009 Blackpool Pleasure Beach Open

Minigolf on ESPN8: The Ocho!

Minigolf will be featured on ESPN8: The Ocho this month.

The National Putting Tour American Dream’s Super Roll of Putting tournament will feature as part of the upcoming programming for ESPN8: The Ocho.

Our friends at The Putting Penguin were a part of the event and it'll be interesting to see the show.

ESPN8: The Ocho is ESPN's annual showcase of some of the world's lesser-seen sports. In this, the ninth edition of the channel, ESPN's platforms will air more than 65 hours of sporting action between Thursday 31st July and Sunday 3rd August.

The National Putting Tour American Dream’s Super Roll of Putting competition will be shown on ESPN8: The Ocho at 10pm on Thursday 31st July.

It's brilliant to see miniature golf feature in the line-up, and there are some other amazing sports, games and pursuits in the schedule too - including Dodgeball.

We're big fans of Dodgeball - and inspired by the film Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story we used to run dodgeball leagues back in the noughties. 

Find out more.

You can see more information, find out all the sports covered, and the full schedule on the ESPN8: The Ocho website.

The PIAG Open Championship 2025 tees-off today

Information about the PIAG Open Championship 2025.

The Paradise Island Adventure Golf Open Championship has returned.

Your chance to win six months of unlimited adventure golf and the PIAG Open trophy.

The PIAG Open tees-off today, Thursday 17th July, with Paradise Island Adventure Golf courses around the UK offering players the chance to enter the event when they play a round at a PIAG course.

The Tiki Hut Trail course at Paradise Island Adventure Golf at the Trafford Centre in Manchester

About the PIAG Open adventure golf championship.

The PIAG Open Championship is taking place across Paradise Island Adventure Golf courses between Thursday 17th and Sunday 20th July.

Paradise Island Adventure Golf have eight venues in England and Scotland.

Find out more on the Paradise Island Adventure Golf website.

Winning the PIAG Open Championship.

I won the PIAG Open Championship at the Manchester Trafford Centre venue in 2018, with Emily winning the competition in 2019.

PIAG Open Champion in 2019

PIAG Open Champion in 2018

Find your nearest Paradise Island Adventure Golf course.

Visit the Paradise Island Adventure Golf website for more information on the PIAG courses in Glasgow, Livingston, Cheshire Oaks, Manchester, Sheffield, Derby, Rushden Lakes and Plymouth.