Showing posts with label USA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label USA. Show all posts

Wednesday, March 24, 2021

RadioShack is back

Electronics retailer RadioShack is back in business.


RadioShack in Saint Annes on the Sea

US electronics brand RadioShack is aiming to make a comeback with an online shopping mall concept alongside other brands owned by its new parent company. Check out the RadioShack website.

Funnily enough I was at a RadioShack in Denver, Colorado twelve years ago today!

Digital camera quality was something else in 2009!

RadioShack in the UK

I also found a RadioShack shop in Saint Annes on the Sea on the Fylde Coast in June 2017. Sadly it closed down in 2019.

RadioShack in Saint Annes on the Sea
RadioShack in Saint Annes on the Sea - it was the last RadioShack shop in the UK 

Luckily I did manage to shop in there a few times before it disappeared.

Shopping at RadioShack
It was worth shopping there for the bag alone!


RadioShack sign from a shop in Whitstable, Kent
Looking through my photo archive I also found this RadioShack sign from a shop in Whitstable, Kent.

Tandy

My first job was at a Tandy franchise shop in my hometown of Abingdon, Oxfordshire where I sold a number of electronic products bearing the 'RadioShack', 'Genexxa' and 'Realistic' brand names.

Tandy in Hitchin
This Tandy signage was on display in Hitchin in 2019

Tandy said goodbye to the UK high street in 2001 as the last of the shops were converted after acquisition by Carphone Warehouse.

Tandy in Hitchin
Round the back of the shop in March 2016

Last year I discovered that the Tandy brand is still alive and kicking. While there are no longer any Tandy shops on the high street I actually bought some Tandy brand rechargeable batteries from the Tandy online shop.

Tandy batteries

I also found a new old stock Tandy EC-500 Multilingual electronic translator in a charity shop in Stockport last November. That was a bargain buy - it cost me more to buy new CR2032 batteries to go in it!

Interestingly the name Tandy comes from one of the founders of a leather goods company called Tandy Leather - a business that later became RadioShack.

Related blog posts:

Monday, March 15, 2021

Happy 9th Anniversary to KISS by Monster Mini Golf!

Today is the 9th Anniversary of KISS by Monster Mini Golf in Las Vegas.


Congratulations to the Monster Mini Golf team on the milestone.

KISS by Monster Mini Golf in Las Vegas


Emily putting into The Demon's mouth at KISS Monster Mini Golf in Las Vegas
Emily putting into The Demon's mouth at KISS Monster Mini Golf

You can now find KISS by Monster Mini Golf at the Rio Hotel & Casino. Visit the Monster Mini Golf website for more information.

I was last in Las Vegas ten years ago so haven't played the course yet.

We're looking forward to a return to Las Vegas in the future and playing both the KISS Monster Mini Golf and Twilight Zone Mini Golf courses in the city.

Thursday, March 11, 2021

New Swingers Crazy Golf courses opening in the USA

Swingers Crazy Golf courses to open in Washington D.C. and New York.


Swingers Crazy Golf in London, 2019

The first Swingers Crazy Golf courses outside of the UK will be opening in Washington D.C. and New York.

The first of the new indoor minigolf venues will be opening at Dupont Circle in Washington this June.

The second Swingers Crazy Golf in the US will be opening at the new Virgin Hotel on Broadway in the Flatiron District of New York City later this year or in early 2022.

Visit the Swingers Crazy Golf website for more information.

Swingers Crazy Golf in London, 2019
Emily playing at Swingers West End in 2019


Swingers Crazy Golf on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

We played the first Swingers pop-up Crazy Golf course in Shoreditch back in September 2014. The brand has grown since then, with Swingers in The City opening next to the Gherkin in 2016 and Swingers West End following in 2018.


Crazy Golf and competitive socialising

The phrase 'competitive socialising' has become a popular way to describe going out and having fun, with a number of new businesses catering to the demand of a public who wanted to compete at something while eating and drinking in a nice setting.

Whether it is table tennis, darts, shuffleboard, bingo, tenpin bowling, arcade games, or my personal favourite crazy golf, people are finding new ways to quench their thirst, have fun and compete without signing-up to a full sports league or taking things too seriously.

Wednesday, January 27, 2021

Puttery mini golf

A new mini golf brand has been created and will launch in the USA this summer.


Puttery Mini Golf from Drive Shack is launching in the USA

Puttery venues will offer high-tech indoor mini golf along with dining and drinking options.

Puttery is being developed by Drive Shack and the minigolf brand will be delivered in partnership with Rory McIlroy.

The first Puttery location will open in Dallas, Texas this summer. A further site is planned for Charlotte, North Carolina with another five Puttery venues opening in 2021. A further ten locations are planned to open in 2022.

Visit the Drive Shack website for more information.

Wednesday, January 13, 2021

A Couple of Putts see in the New Year

Many thanks to our friends Tom & Robin at A Couple of Putts for sending us this ace new miniature golf postcard.

A Couple of Putts Happy Holidays postcard 2020

The minigolfing duo are seeing in the New Year by posting a hole-in-one video from a different course each day throughout January to #Make2021aHoleInOne.

Happy New Year! We’re feeling hopeful about 2021 and we’re kicking it off with some fun. Let’s have an ace of a new year!

Check out the A Couple of Putts website for more information.

Friday, October 23, 2020

90 years since the first National Tom Thumb Golf Championship took place

The first National Tom Thumb Championship was contested in Chattanooga, Tennessee 90 years ago today.

Garnet Carter created the first artificial miniature golf course in the USA in 1926. The first of the 'Tom Thumb Golf' brand of miniature golf course was an 18-hole layout located near Lookout Mountain in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

By 1930 there were some 25,000 miniature golf courses in the USA, 3,000 of which were the now patented Tom Thumb course franchises.

The course and fantasy theming caught the imagination of visitors and on the 23rd October 1930 the final of the first-ever National Tom Thumb Championship took place.

Qualifying events had taken place in all of the then 48 states of the USA, with 200 players representing 30 states in the grand final. The event had a total prize fund of $10,000, with the champion winning $2,000!

We haven't played a Tom Thumb Golf course on our travels, but we do have some nice old postcards of Tom Thumb courses in our collection. This one is of a course at Westende Bains in Belgium

Westende Bains, Belgium - Le Tom Thumb Golf - Date Unknown

Check out the Crazy Golf Museum website for more details of minigolf history.

Sunday, September 13, 2020

The Putt Park's Annual Mini-Golf Tournament in Las Vegas

Minigolfing at The Putt Park in Las Vegas.



I won The Putt Park's Annual Mini-Golf Tournament in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA back in September 2011. It's always nice to get a win in Vegas.

The Putt Park in Las Vegas
Wall of Famer



We first played minigolf 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. We've now been to 956 course since our travels began in September 2006.

The Putt Park in Las Vegas

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

The Putt Park in Las Vegas

The Putt Park in Las Vegas

The Putt Park in Las Vegas

We're hoping to revisit Las Vegas again in the future as a few more miniature golf courses have opened since our last trip.

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Sunday, September 06, 2020

Hole 19 Miniature Golf in Las Vegas

There's a new British-themed pop-up crazy golf course in Las Vegas.


There's a new British-themed pop-up crazy golf course in Las Vegas

A new pop-up minigolf course has been created for a six-week run in Las Vegas, USA.

The course is a 9-hole 1900's themed British-style minigolf golf layout.

The competitive socialising venue will also house a bar and other games and arcade machines.

Hole 19 opens on the 24th September and will close on the 1st November. Visit the Hole 19 website for more information.

Playing minigolf in Las Vegas

We've played a number of minigolf courses in Las Vegas on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour and were planning a holiday there this year. Back in 2011 I won the Putt Park's annual miniature golf tournament there.

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Monday, August 17, 2020

Orpheum Mini-Golf in Memphis, Tennessee

A look at the pop-up minigolf course at the Orpheum Theatre in Memphis, Tennessee.


Orpheum Mini-Golf in Memphis, Tennessee. Photo by Jon Drexler, August 2020
The Lion King

Many thanks to our friend, team-mate and minigolf rival Jon Drexler for sending us some photos from his visit to play the new pop-up minigolf course set up at the Orpheum theatre in Memphis, Tennessee, USA.

Orpheum Mini-Golf in Memphis, Tennessee. Photo by Jon Drexler, August 2020
Memphis The Musical

Orpheum Mini-Golf is a 9-hole socially distanced Broadway-themed course and is set-up on the stage of the theatre.

Orpheum Mini-Golf in Memphis, Tennessee. Photo by Jon Drexler, August 2020
The view from the stage

It's a nice use of the theatre space during the pandemic and a way to connect with old and new audiences.

Orpheum Mini-Golf in Memphis, Tennessee. Photo by Jon Drexler, August 2020
What a place to play some minigolf

The Orpheum Mini-Golf course opened this month and is open Thursday to Sunday. The 'show' runs until 15th November.

Orpheum Mini-Golf in Memphis, Tennessee. Photo by Jon Drexler, August 2020
Hamilton

We love seeing miniature golf course pop-ups and unique layouts. The Orpheum Mini-Golf course certainly ticks those boxes. I really like the look of the Hamilton hole above.

Orpheum Mini-Golf in Memphis, Tennessee. Photo by Jon Drexler, August 2020
Les Misérables

Orpheum Mini-Golf in Memphis, Tennessee. Photo by Jon Drexler, August 2020
The green on Les Misérables

Orpheum Mini-Golf in Memphis, Tennessee. Photo by Jon Drexler, August 2020
Memphis the Musical

Orpheum Mini-Golf in Memphis, Tennessee. Photo by Jon Drexler, August 2020
Wicked

The Phantom of the Opera

The Colour Purple

Orpheum Mini-Golf in Memphis, Tennessee. Photo by Jon Drexler, August 2020
Chicago

Orpheum Mini-Golf in Memphis, Tennessee. Photo by Jon Drexler, August 2020
Fiddler on the Roof

Visit the Orpheum Mini-Golf website for more information, opening times, booking details and prices.


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Tuesday, June 30, 2020

Minigolf in the Boondocks

A look back at my trip to play miniature golf at Boondocks Fun Center in Northglenn, Colorado.


Boondocks Fun Center in Northglenn, Colorado

I travelled to Denver, Colorado, USA back in March 2009 to attend a week-long sports conference in the city. During some down time I travelled outside the city limits to play miniature golf in the Boondocks. Boondocks Fun Center in Northglenn to be precise.

Miniature golf at Boondocks Fun Center in Northglenn, Colorado

Miniature golf at Boondocks Fun Center in Northglenn, Colorado

Located at Boondocks Fun Center in the town of Northglenn, Colorado are two 18-hole courses - the Caverns Mill and Hillbilly Hallow - that sit next to Interstate-25.

Miniature golf at Boondocks Fun Center in Northglenn, Colorado
That's I-25 to the right of the course

As it was '$12 Tuesday' I had unlimited play on the minigolf courses and managed to fit in three rounds on the two layouts.

Miniature golf at Boondocks Fun Center in Northglenn, Colorado

Miniature golf at Boondocks Fun Center in Northglenn, Colorado

Miniature golf at Boondocks Fun Center in Northglenn, Colorado

Miniature golf at Boondocks Fun Center in Northglenn, Colorado

Miniature golf at Boondocks Fun Center in Northglenn, Colorado

Miniature golf at Boondocks Fun Center in Northglenn, Colorado

Miniature golf at Boondocks Fun Center in Northglenn, Colorado

They were the 82nd and 83rd courses played on my Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Find out more

Visit the Boondocks Fun Center website for more information, opening times and prices.

Our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

We've now been to 949 courses since September 2006.

We've visited 39 courses in eleven overseas countries:
- Australia
- Austria
- Belgium
- Finland
- Hong Kong
- New Zealand
- Poland
- Singapore
- Spain
- Sweden
- USA

We've visited 910 courses in the British Isles:
- England
- Wales
- Scotland
- Northern Ireland
- Jersey
- Isle of Man

Links:

- Boondocks Food & Fun
- Boondocks Northglenn

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Monday, June 22, 2020

Today is Summerween!

Happy Summerween.


Summerween is celebrated annually on the 22nd June.

Will you be carving a Summerween Jack-o-Melon today?
Will you be carving a Summerween Jack-o-Melon today?

The quirky holiday is also on the second to last Friday of the month of June. That was last Friday.

So you get two bites of the cherry (or should that be watermelon) to celebrate the made up event.

Sunday, June 21, 2020

Putt-Putt miniature golf is 66 years old today

Today marks 66 years since the world's first Putt-Putt course opened.


The very first Putt-Putt Golf course was created by Don Clayton in Fayetteville, North Carolina, USA back in 1954.

Putt-Putt is the only patented game of miniature golf and began in Fayetteville, North Carolina in 1954. In the 1960's Putt-Putt franchises began opening outside of the US, in locations such as South Africa, Australia and Japan. There were also courses in the UK, the first of which opened in Sunderland in 1968. Others followed at Flamingo Land in Yorkshire and in Buxton, Derbyshire. However, information on these UK courses is limited.

You can read the Putt-Putt story on the Putt-Putt Fun Centres website.

Tournament Putt-Putt


On the competitive side of the game, official Putt-Putt tournaments have been played since 1959. The first local competition took place in 1955. You can read about the history of the PPA and APA on the Professional Putters Association website.

Televised events


The game has been televised quite a bit over the years, with ESPN in the USA carrying tournaments. Every year they air repeats of Putt-Putt tournaments as part of ESPN 8: The Ocho's programming.

You can watch a number of events from the 1970s to the 2000s on the Putt-Putt Funhouse YouTube Channel.



Playing Putt-Putt


The closest Emily and I have got to being at a Putt-Putt course are some postcards, game tokens, a jigsaw puzzle and a photo one of my family took at a course while in South Africa.

Saying that however, I did win a free round at Putt-Putt of Warren in Ohio last month. I'm looking forward to playing there in the future.


A Putt-Putt postcard from South Africa
A Putt-Putt postcard from South Africa

I do have some Putt-Putt tokens in my collection. I'm always on the lookout for more though
I do have some Putt-Putt tokens in my collection. I'm always on the lookout for more though

A look at Putt-Putt courses in the USA and South Africa


Luckily some of our fellow miniature golf enthusiasts, bloggers, minigolf rivals and friends have shared photos of some of their favourite Putt-Putt courses with us.

Putt Putt in Richmond, Indiana. Photo by Tom and Robin at A Couple of Putts
Putt Putt in Richmond, Indiana. Photo by Tom and Robin at A Couple of Putts

The Putt-Putt Fun Center course in Hickory, North Carolina photographed by Pat Sheridan of The Putting Penguin minigolf website
The Putt-Putt Fun Center course in Hickory, North Carolina photographed by Pat Sheridan of The Putting Penguin minigolf website

Pro Putter Matt Bellner playing the Putt-Putt course in Arlington, Texas. Photo by Matt Bellner
Pro Putter Matt Bellner playing the Putt-Putt course in Arlington, Texas
  
The Putt-Putt miniature golf course in Three Anchor Bay in Moullie Point / Sea Point, Cape Town, South Africa. Photo by PJ Goedhals
The Putt-Putt miniature golf course in Three Anchor Bay in Moullie Point / Sea Point, Cape Town, South Africa. Photo by PJ Goedhals

Find out more


Check out the Putt-Putt Golf website for more information on Putt-Putt brand minigolf. You can find out more information about Putt-Putt tournaments on the Professional Putters Association (PPA) website.