Shooting Shacks – Hayling Island

After a fruitless search in Portsmouth, Southsea, Shanklin, Sandown and Ryde on the Isle of Wight two Shooting Shacks were found in Hayling Island’s Funland.

They were:

The Hillbilly Shooting Gallery




And The Spooky Shoot (which seems to be a Japanese Import!)

Hayling Island Scarecrow Festival

Following the completion of the Minigolf Tour of Hampshire & the Isle of Wight we explored the excellent Seaside resort of Hayling Island which was holding a Scarecrow Festival.

In our Scarecrow searching, in-between rides at Funland, Crazy Golf, Stone Skipping and Steam Train Riding, we managed to spot 30 of the potential 246 that have been created and listed in the Scarecrow Trail Sheet.

The Hayling Island Scarecrow Festival is running from 26th July to 9th August.

See www.haylingscarecrows.co.uk for more information.

Overseas Minigolf Tours

Setting off to Hayling Island or the Isle of Wight? Then don’t forget:
- Your passport
- Duty Free Allowance
- To check if your mobile phone will work
- Travel Insurance
- To check local times
- A phrase book

Hampshire & Isle of Wight Invitational Tournament 2008

Three days…
Five towns…
Two (Three?) Islands…
Nine courses…
125 holes…

…The Hampshire & Isle of Wight Invitational Tournament 2008!

New Adventure Golf Course at Wroxham Barns, Norfolk

Minigolfers Richard & Emily Gottfried have been invited to the launch of a brand new 18 hole Adventure Golf course at Wroxham Barns, Norfolk.

According to the organizers lots of exciting things will be going on, including a challenge match between the reigning World Crazy Golf Champion, Chris Harding, and a top local golfer!

The course has been built by UrbanCrazy, sponsors of the Great Britain Minigolf Sport Team.

More details on Wroxham Barns can be found here:
www.wroxhambarns.co.uk

Full details of the event and photos of the course are to follow.

New Minigolf League!

The first 36 hole Minigolf course in the UK, at Birmingham’s Star City Leisure Complex, is due to start a League night in August, starting with a singles Invitational tournament in early August.

More details can be found here:
www.adventureminigolf.co.uk

Ham & Eggers – Quiz Champions of the George II Pub!

The Ham & Egger Sports and Social Club entered its first Pub Quiz in many years at the George II pub in Luton’s Bute Street yesterday evening and ended as the winning team.

With a total of 39 points out of 50 over five rounds, the quiz went to a tie breaker after another team gained two extra points on top of their score of 37 for having the funniest team name (CFLR).

The tie breaker question was “The author of Jeeves & Wooster is known by his initials P.G., what is his surname?” and without any hesitation the answer “Wodehouse” was given by the Ham & Eggers team to win the quiz.

One question that did outfox the Ham & Eggers was:
“LARGE FAT NOISE is an anagram of which 80’s pop star?”

Night Crazy Golf and the Irregular Mini Golf Tour Emu Open

The Seafront Crazy Golf Complex in Hastings is open until 11pm at weekends!

Eastbourne - Treasure Island Adventure Golf

A top notch course and a true test of Putting skill.

Related blog posts:

- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

- Eastbourne

Link:

- Treasure Island Pirate Adventure Golf

Blackbeard's Treasure Island

Another seaside town, another Shooting Gallery!

This time in Eastbourne.

Related blog posts:

- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

- Eastbourne

A quest is over

After two years and countless attempts to win an Emu hand puppet from a seaside amusement arcade 'Grabber' I finally won one last Saturday.

Here he is in 'The Smuggler's' pub on Saturday night.


And here he is guarding the Putter Bags on Day 2 of the BMGA British Championships.



Related blog posts:
- Emu

Swing and a Miss!

Quality Batting Cages at Northwick Park in Harrow.

Practice Softball or Baseball - £2.50 for 15 balls!

Also home to a BIG Golf course and a 'Mini Majors' Crazy Golf course!

"Emily is third in the country"

The Luton News and Dunstable Gazette wrote a story on 16th July about Emily's first podium place after she finished 3rd in the BMGA British Women's Minigolf Championships.

BMGA Order of Merit Rankings 14 July 2008

Ryanair Magazine follows the British Minigolf Team

http://ryanairmag.com/2008/07/01/mini-masters

Minigolf Report – BMGA British Championships 2008

14th July 2008
Press Information
For Immediate Release

Minigolf Report – BMGA British Championships 2008

Luton Minigolfers Emily and Richard Gottfried travelled to Hastings, East Sussex on the 12th and 13th July to compete in the first Minigolf Major of the 2008 Season, the BMGA British Championships. Over two days 33 competitors played 126 holes, in seven 18-hole rounds at the Planet Hastings Minigolf Course at White Rock Gardens.

The tournament was won by Hastings own Tim ‘Ace Man’ Davies who carded a new course record score of 26 (-10) to finish with a total score of 226 (-26). The 26 scored was also the best ever round of Minigolf recorded on British Soil. In second place was Andy Exall of Tunbridge Wells, who had led the tournament from round one but carded a 35 (-1) in the final round for a total of 230 (-22). Third was John McIver of Hastings with a score of 243 (-9).

Emily finished in 26th place with scores of 41, 56, 42, 46, 46, 41, 48 for a total of 320 (+68). Emily also achieved a new personal best score on the Planet Hastings course, with her pair of 41’s besting the score of 48 she recorded in March 2008.

In the BMGA Women’s Championships Emily achieved her best result to date and a spot on the podium after finishing in third place, behind five-times Women’s champion Ruth Bullin of St Leonards-on-Sea and Jo Williamson of the Planet Hastings Crazy Golf Club.

Emily said “I am really thrilled to be Britain’s number three Female Minigolfer. It was a really tough tournament and on a difficult course, and the competition was close right up to the final round, so it is really satisfying to achieve third place.”

In the main BMGA British Championship tournament Richard finished in 18th place with a seven round total of 284 (+32) carding scores of 37, 46, 40, 39, 42, 41, 39. His score of 37 (+1) is a new personal best on the Planet Hastings course (having previously achieved a best score of 51 (+15) in March 2008).

Richard said “I am fairly pleased with my scores, and I was happy to have set myself a new personal best. I’ll be looking to go under par when I return to this course again in March for the Hastings Open.”

Ends

Crazy Golf spotted on Brighton Pier...

...but too good to be true!


Not a 'New' Sideshow at all! The Crazy Golf Game has been closed for two years and is now a Coconut Shy.

Like the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour on Facebook, check out our YouTube channel and follow me and Emily on Twitter.

BMGA Brighton Open Report

22nd June 2008

Minigolf Tournament Report – BMGA Brighton Open

In his second tournament of the week Richard Gottfried was unable to make it three in a row after wins in the BMGA British Club Championship and Adventure Island/Heart FM Open, when he competed in the BMGA Brighton Open at Peter Pan’s 12-hole Peter Adventure Golf course on Madeira Drive, Brighton on Saturday 21st June.

In a field of 33 players, which included 9 local players, Richard finished in 19th place with a four round total of 115 (+15) after rounds of 27, 34, 28 and 26.

The competition was won for the second year in a row by Brighton’s Jacob Stevenson who held on to a wire-to-wire lead with rounds of 23, 24, 24, 25 for a four round total of 96 (-4).

Richard said of his performance in the BMGA Brighton Open “I was in 11th place after the first round but after my disastrous second round where I took a 6 on the 12th hole I couldn’t seem to make up much ground on the leaders. My problem was hitting too many threes and only managing two Aces, and they came along too late to be of any help.”

Richard has moved up one place in the BMGA Order of Merit and is now currently ranked 15th in Great Britain.

The next tournament on the British Minigolf Association (BMGA) Tour will see Richard and Emily Gottfried heading to Hastings for the BMGA British Championships in mid-July.

End

Gottfried wins the Adventure Island/Heart FM Open

18th June 2008

Minigolf Tournament Result – Adventure Island/Heart FM Open

On Tuesday 17th June Luton Minigolfer Richard Gottfried was invited to take part in the Adventure Island/Heart FM Open at the new 36-hole Indoor Adventure Minigolf Complex at Star City, Birmingham, as it played host to its first Minigolf Tournament.

The Exhibition tournament was ultimately decided in a play-off between Gottfried and reigning Castle Golf World Crazy Golf Champion Chris Harding.

In the competition both players had achieved scores of 35, with Harding setting a new course record on the Lost Hut Trail course, and Gottfried equalling the course record on the Hidden Cove Challenge course. Course owner John Whitehead presided over the tournament and decided that a play-off at the tricky 8th hole on the Hidden Cove Challenge course would decide the trophy winner.

However, after three attempts to win the hole both players were still even and so the play-off moved to the 8th hole on the Lost Hut Trail course. Here Harding played first and recorded a score of 3, which proved to be one stroke too many as Gottfried stepped up and holed out in 2 shots to take the play-off victory.

Richard Gottfried said, “It’s great to get a tournament win, and the play-off was very tense. The Adventure Island course at Star City is a top course and good fun to play, there are also some very tricky holes and I am looking forward to returning for more tournaments in the future.”

Ends

16th best Minigolfer in Great Britain

Following my tournament win in the BMGA British Club Championships and 4th place in the BMGA English Open I have moved up from 25th to 16th place in the BMGA Order of Merit rankings - my highest rank to date!

4th in the English Open and first 1st place

Minigolf Tournaments Reports

BMGA English Open & BMGA British Club Championships

BMGA English Open

Luton Minigolfer Richard Gottfried competed in two BMGA Minigolf tournaments last weekend at the Recreation Ground Minigolf course in Stratford-upon-Avon.

On Saturday 7th Richard competed in the BMGA English Open tournament where he finished 4th of 36 players after rounds of 34, 33 and 36 for a three rounds total of 103 (-5).

In a very close competition that saw a number of players chasing a top three finish going into the third round, it was Tim ‘Ace Man’ Davies from Hastings who lifted the English Open title with a scores of 32, 32, 35 for a three round total of 99 strokes (-9). In second place was John Moore from Newcastle who beat Birmingham’s Chris Harding in a play-off for second place after both were tied on 100 strokes (-8).

Richard was in second place after two-rounds but his third round score of Par was not enough to keep him there as both Harding and Moore moved up the field after achieving excellent third-round scores; with Moore equalling the course record at 31 strokes and then Harding shooting a 30 to break his own course record.

Richard said “I feel I put in a great performance and it was only down to two exceptional rounds from Chris and John that meant that my last round was not enough to keep me in second place.”

He added “I have no complaints though as I played my best and was only four shots off the winner. In last years English Open I came 23rd and fourth from bottom so I am showing a lot of improvement in my game, and the ranking points from the tournament will come in very handy in rising up the BMGA Order of Merit.”

BMGA British Club Championships
Following the BMGA English Open on Saturday was Sunday’s BMGA British Club Championships, which saw seven teams battling to become the champions.

Following Richard’s 3rd place finish in April’s Midland Invitational Tournament he was selected to be a member of the Midland Minigolf Club’s ‘A’ team.

Each four-player team competed in six 12-hole Matchplay matches to decide the winner, with the Midlands Minigolf Club’s ‘A’ team emerging victorious for an undisputed victory notching up 6 straight wins against the best Minigolf combinations in Great Britain including the four-time, and 2007, champions the Planet Hastings Crazy Golf Club.

The winning team consisted of Chris Harding (Captain), Jam Trubridge, Richard Gottfried and John Moore.

Club Captain Harding said of the win “The Midlands Minigolf Club were really pleased to be crowned British Champions on Sunday. We started the tournament as strong favourites and managed to come through by winning all of our games. As team captain it is only right that I should be congratulating my team: John, Jam and Richard for their massive contributions to an excellent team performance. I'm especially pleased for Richard who wins his first trophy after an excellent 4th place finish in The English Open on Saturday. With two other Midlands teams playing so well in the competition, both containing very promising juniors, the future looks bright for the Midlands Minigolf scene.”

Commenting on his debut BMGA Tour victory Richard said, “Our team played so well together and we made very few mistakes along the way. There were no easy teams to play against and we had to face some very tough opposition on the way to the win but we all just stayed focussed on winning the Championship. To be undefeated throughout the tournament just showed the strength in our team.”

On his overall performance over the weekend Richard said “I am so happy to have achieved my first BMGA tour win, and combined with my best finish in a major Open I am pleased that my commitment to the sport of Minigolf is paying off with good finishes and a haul of ranking points.”

Emily Gottfried was also in competition in the British Club Championships where she was a member of the Midlands ‘C’ team which finished 7th of 7 in the tournament, losing all but one match but very close to winning or drawing a number of matches throughout the competition.

Richard next competes in the BMGA Brighton Open in June and then Richard and Emily head to Hastings for the BMGA British Championships in July.

Another Seaside Shooting Shack

This time it was Cody's Cabin in Felixstowe, Suffolk.

BMGA British Doubles Tournament

Minigolf Report – BMGA British Doubles Tournament in Warwick

On Saturday 17th May 2008 Luton Minigolfers Richard and Emily Gottfried joined forces to compete in the BMGA British Doubles Minigolf Tournament at the Adventure Golf course at St Nicholas Park, Warwick. In total fourteen teams competed in the event, which was won by the Tunbridge Wells Team of brothers Andy and Trevor Exall.

The format of the tournament was 12-hole Matchplay, with one member of the team taking the first shot and then alternating with their playing partner on any further shots if necessary. This format is quite different to the normal singles stroke play format used on the BMGA Tour, but made for some exciting matches.

The fourteen teams were split into two groups for the Round Robin stage of the tournament in which Richard and Emily played six matches. Here they achieved three wins, two losses and a draw, giving them a total of 10 points. This saw them in 5th place in their group and 7th overall. In the next round of knockout matches they faced the team of Alan Norman and Gareth Holmes and were defeated by three holes. This defeat saw them finish the tournament in 11th place.

Following their recent performances in tournaments both Richard and Emily have moved up the rankings in the BMGA Order of Merit. Richard has risen to 25th in Great Britain (from 34th) and Emily, who was previously unranked now lies in 44th place.

Commenting on the British Doubles Richard said “The format of the tournament was different to what we are used to playing, but it made for some interesting play and you can really see how sometimes you leave yourself a very tough second shot when you have to watch your partner playing it.”

He added “Overall I am pleased with our performance, we had some very good wins and some very close one-hole defeats in the group stage and were unfortunate in the knockout round. We took a three on the first hole of our semi-final to go one-down and then Alan and Gareth Aced the next hole, meaning we were playing catch-up all round.”

Hesburger

The best Burgers in all of Finland can be found at Hesburger!

Hesburger in Tampere, Finland

While playing for the Great Britain Minigolf Team at the 2008 Nations Cup we enjoyed the meals at Hesburger

Link:

- Hesburger

Nations Cup, Tampere, Finland

On the 10th & 11th May 2008 Minigolfers Richard Gottfried and Emily Gottfried were members of the Great Britain team that competed in the Minigolf European Nations Cup in Tampere, Finland.

The Great Britain Minigolf teams finished the tournament in 12th & 13th places. In the individual rankings Richard finished in 51st place and Emily in 53rd.

The Great Britain team also received Competitors medals at the tournament.

Full details, results and statistics from the Nations Cup 2008 can be found here.






Photos from Nations Cup 2008.

3rd place finish in the MIT!

At the Midland Invitational Tournament in April Richard Gottfried achieved his best finish to date by taking third place.

In doing so he also earned a place in the Midlands A Team for the upcoming BMGA Club Championships in Stratford Upon Avon in June.

Close to the hole...

...or not!

14 tries and the Funsports 7 ball takes the victory.

Squires Gate

There is an area of Blackpool named in my honour.

Alpine Obstacle

A very Ace-able hole!

Bugsey's Shooting Shack in Blackpool

In a twist on the Old Zeke theme Blackpool has a 1920s Mob Shooting Range!

Alpine Open - Hole in One

Blackpool Pleasure Beach Crazy Adventure

The Blackpool Gazette wrote a story about the Pleasure Beach Open on 15th April and it can be found here:

http://www.blackpoolgazette.co.uk/blackpoolnews/Blackpool-Pleasure-Beach-crazy-adventure.3980533.jp

There is also a video taking a look at the crazy golf at Blackpool's Pleasure Beach course and I am interviewed in it.

Two top ten finishes and a new BMGA Course Record in Blackpool Tournament

On Monday 14th April Luton Minigolfers Richard and Emily Gottfried travelled to Blackpool, Lancashire to compete in the inaugural Pleasure Beach Open.

In a field of 15 players, including six Great Britain Internationals, the current World Crazy Golf Champion and the BMGA British Master, Richard and Emily finished in joint 6th place. Both were tied on 98 strokes after three rounds of play on the brand new 12-hole Adventure Golf course.

In addition to her top ten finish Emily became the Pleasure Beach Women’s Champion and also managed to set the Official BMGA Record for the course, with a magnificent score of 27 strokes, achieved on her third round of play.

Emily said “I was very pleased to take part in the first tournament at the new Pleasure Beach Adventure Golf course, and both shocked and happy to set the first BMGA course record there. I had a fantastic round and I really enjoyed playing the course, which is extremely tricky in places. The Pleasure Beach is a fantastic venue and all the staff and local players were really friendly. I am looking forward to playing in Blackpool again in the near future.”

The Pleasure Beach Open was won by the reigning World Crazy Golf Champion Chris Harding who scored 28-28-29 for a total of 85, second was BMGA British Master John Moore who scored 30-28-28 for a total of 86.

Scores for Richard and Emily Gottfried:
Richard’s Score – 35-29-34 – 98
Emily’s Score – 33-38-27 – 98

Richard will next be competing in the Midland Invitational Tournament in Stratford-upon-Avon at the end of the month; both Emily and Richard will then head to Finland to compete in the European Nations Cup, followed by a return to domestic competition in Mid-May where they will team up in the BMGA British Doubles Tournament in Warwick.

Ends

Old Zeke Kicked the Bucket

You can't beat a go on Zeke's Shooting Shack when at the seaside!

Found on Southend Beach

A boatwreck!

Arnold Palmer in Southend...

...25 years and counting

Very wet weather = No Practice

Top Tip - Don't walk right next to the seafront on a day of high winds and driving rain!

BMGA British Masters 2008

BMGA British Masters Minigolf Tournament Report

On Saturday 29th March Luton Minigolfer Richard Gottfried travelled to Southend-on-Sea to compete against 29 of Great Britain ’s best Minigolfers in the first Minigolf ‘Major’ of the 2008 British Minigolf Association Season - the BMGA British Masters Tournament. Played over 36-holes at the tough Inca and Aztec themed Adventure Golf Course at Adventure Island the winner, with a score of 74, was Newcastle ’s John Moore.

Richard finished the tournament in 22nd place, only 14 shots off the winner and five shots away from a place in the top ten, after four 9-hole rounds scoring 22 – 22 – 24 – 20 for a total of 88 and an average of 2.44 shots per hole. Tournament winner John Moore averaged 2.05 shots per hole.

Pos Name R1 R2 R3 R4 Total Average
1 MOORE, John 19 19 18 18 74 18.50
2 KELLARD, Keith 19 19 18 20 76 19.00
3 HARDING, Chris* 17 20 21 19 77 19.25
22 GOTTFRIED, Richard 22 22 24 20 88 22.00

*Third/Fourth place decided after play-off.

Richard said “I made my debut in this competition last year and I scored a total of 95 and finished 24th of 28, so I have definitely improved this time around. This year my finishing was better, although I did still trip myself up with a five on the 9th hole and left myself some tricky second shots in places, but learning from mistakes is all part of Minigolf.”

Tournament organiser Ted McIver said of the competition “The BMGA British Masters tournament is now in its ninth year and is one of the key tournaments on the BMGA Tour Calendar. This year the competition was fierce as there were very good scores across the field, with a total of 19 players carding scores in the 80s.”

Saturday also saw the latest two knockout matches in the season-long BMGA British Matchplay Championships being played. In the first match Brighton & Hove Minigolf Club member Kevin Botto beat Ted McIver by one hole, while in the second match British Number 5 Andy Exall, of the Tunbridge Wells Minigolf Club, beat Richard Gottfried 4&3.

Commenting on his victory over Richard, Andy Exall said “It was a good match, unfortunately for Richard I played easily my best Minigolf of the day during the match. He did get a nice Ace on the 10th Hole and I’m going to try his line next year.”

Match Referee Trevor Robertson said “It was a great pleasure to preside over the Exall/Gottfried Matchplay tie. There was quality play all round, and the match was much closer than the final score suggested.”

Richard said “It was a great tournament and a really good Matchplay match. Unfortunately I lost, but I did so against one of the tournament favourites. It's all good practice for me and playing against highly experienced players like Andy Exall can only help me improve in the sport.”

Ends

Tenpin Bowling Summed Up

"To love bowling is to be so supremely secure or so culturally naive as to shrug off the pall of utter unhipness that shadows all who celebrate the skill of throwing a 16-pound orb at a single spot down an oiled patch of wood (or something that looks like it) 60 feet long and 42 inches wide."

Andrew Putz, The Cleveland Scene, August 10, 2000

The Running Man - Classic Quote

"WHITMAN, PRICE, AND HADDAD!!! You remember them! There they are now, BASKING under the Maui sun."

According to Damon Killian, host of "The Running Man," Whitman, Price, and Haddad are "last seasons winners" of the Running Man gameshow. According to the bounty hunter named Fireball, played by ex-NFL running back and Hall of Famer Jim Brown, Whitman, Price, and Haddad are "last season's losers." Regardless, these three contestants are found dead and severely burned by Maria Conchita Alonzo in the musky bosom of the gameshow's playing ground.

What's in a Minigolf Kitbag?

A selection of specialist Minigolf balls and a Funsports Putter!

Snow Day Crazy Golf Course

Car Park Snow Golf

“Disappointing BMGA Tour start for the Gottfrieds.”

The Luton News and Dunstable Gazette newspapers featured a story about our participation in the first event of the 2008 BMGA Tour at the Planet Hastings Crazy Golf Club Open and the tournament results on page 66 of the Sports Section in the Wednesday 19th March Edition.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Despite coming 25th and 26th respectively, the event was a good training opportunity for the upcoming British Championships that will also be played on the Planet Hastings course - a course that until this weekend, neither of us had played before!

Minigolf Season Opener – Planet Hastings Crazy Golf Club Open Report

On Saturday 15th March Luton Minigolfers Richard and Emily Gottfried entered the field of 31 competitors in the Planet Hastings Crazy Golf Club Open Championship 2008to play 72-holes, across the four Minigolf courses in Hastings .

The winner was Trevor Exall from Tunbridge Wells who achieved a winning total of 144 strokes, averaging two strokes per hole – a very impressive perfect score of Par overall on the tough Hastings courses.

Emily was impressive in only her second tournament on the BMGA Tour and finished as the 3rd best female player and 26th overall with a score of 182 (2.52 strokes per hole). Emily hit five holes-in-one over the four rounds and won through to a spot-prize play-off against eventual tournament winner Trevor Exall, unfortunately Emily hit a two while Trevor ‘Aced’ the hole to win.

Richard finished his 11th BMGA Tour event in 25th place with a score of 181 (2.51 strokes per hole) and hitting 6 holes-in-one, but also scoring two sevens which put paid to his chances of finishing higher in the tournament.

The table below shows a breakdown and comparison of the scores over the four courses of the top three players and Richard & Emily Gottfried.
Pos Player Adv Cra Min PH Total Aces 7's
1 Trevor Exall 35 39 37 33 144 10 0
2 Chris Harding 39 33 36 39 147 9 0
3 Tim Davies 41 35 38 36 150 10 0
25 Richard Gottfried 48 35 47 51 181 6 2
26 Emily Gottfried 48 42 44 48 182 5 0

The table below shows a breakdown and comparison of the scores over the four courses of the top six female players.
Pos Player Adv Cra Min PH Total Aces 7's
1 Jo Williamson 44 40 37 44 165 6 0
2 Sue Forrest 43 41 46 44 174 4 0
3 Emily Gottfried 48 42 44 48 182 5 0
4 Cindy Kukielka 45 40 47 58 190 5 1
5 Marion Homer 46 40 49 65 200 2 2
6 Janette Robertson 51 42 52 56 201 3 1



During the tournament the course record at the Seafront Crazy Golf course, which was previously held by Richard Gottfried was broken by Brad Shepherd of the London Minigolf Club who scored a 28, breaking the previous record of 32 and scoring eight holes-in-one in the process.

The next tournament on the BMGA Tour sees Richard travel to Southend-on-Sea to play for the BMGA British Masters title and compete in the BMGA British Matchplay Championships against British Number 5 Andy Exall.

3rd Place Finish for Ham & Eggers Bowling Team

The Ham & Eggers Tenpin Bowling Team achieved a measure of success yesterday evening by striking a third place finish in the Macmillan Cancer Support Annual Bowling Challenge held at Namco Station Luton.

New champions were also crowned with the Flecney Four out-bowling defending, and two-time, champions Plumbs DIY.

In the 2007 Macmillan Cancer Support Annual Bowling Challenge the Ham & Eggers finished in 6th place of nine teams with a team score of 814, so the 2008 result in reaching the podium is a big improvement.

The scores within the Ham & Eggers Team were as follows:
Richard Gottfried - 109 & 111 = 220
Emily Gottfried - 111 & 119 = 230
Mike Wright - 96 & 126 = 222
Mystery Player - 88 & 75 = 163
Team Total - 404 & 431 = 835
Team MVP - Emily Gottfried (2 years running)

Ham & Eggers - New 'Star' Signings

The Ham & Eggers All-Star Tenpin Bowling Team have signed two new players to their squad in an effort to wrestle the MacMillan Shield from the hands of two-time champs Plumbs DIY.

In the line-up for the upcoming MacMillan/Namco Annual Bowling Challenge are Richard Gottfried (Captain), Emily Gottfried (EBA Star), Mike 'Five-Star' Wright and new-signing the Mystery Player.

Already signed up for a place in the squad for the 2009 tournament is Oxana Nikandrova.

Tenpin Bowling - Macmillan Shield

The countdown is on to the Macmillan Cancer Support Annual Bowling Challenge!

15 top teams, including the Ham & Eggers, will be heading into two rounds of Tenpin Bowling action at Namco Luton to compete for the prestigious 'Macmillan Shield'.

World Crazy Golf Championships Video

Another video about the 2007 Virgin Money World Crazy Golf Championships in Hastings.

Scooby Doo Crazy Golf Course

Beware playing at the old 'haunted' Arnold Palmer Crazy Golf course in Southend on Sea!

Related blog posts:
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour
- Minigolf and Crazy Golf courses in Essex

WHAT

3rd February 2008 - Richard Gottfried wins the Irregular Mini Golf Tour West Hertfordshire Amateur Tournament at the TopGolf Watford Game Centre.

Finishing a clear 10 shots ahead of his nearest rival, Richard also lifted the Irregular Mini Golf Tour Wenlock Cup as 'Aces' Champion.

Extra Curricular - Visit the seaside this weekend for some crazy golf

Richard Gottfried was featured in a piece about his Crazy Golf career in the 4th February 2008 edition of The Guardian (Office Hours, Page 3).

The link to the 'Visit the seaside this weekend for some crazy golf' story is here:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2008/feb/04/7

Groundhog Day 2008

Phil Says Six More Weeks of Winter!
Phil's official forecast as read 2/2/08 at sunrise at Gobbler's Knob:

Hear Ye! Hear Ye! Here Ye!

On Gobbler's Knob on this fabulous Groundhog Day, February 2nd, 2008 Punxsutawney Phil, the Seer of Seers, Prognosticator of all Prognosticators, Rose to the call of President Bill Cooper and greeted his handlers, Ben Hughes and John Griffiths.

After casting a weather eye toward thousands of his faithful followers, Phil consulted with President Cooper and directed him to the appropriate scroll, which proclaimed:

"As I look around me, a bright sky I see, and a shadow beside me. Six more weeks of winter it will be!"

Live draw of the BMGA British Matchplay Championships

Here is the video of the live draw of the BMGA British Matchplay Championships 2008.

http://ustream.tv/channel/british-matchplay-championships-round-1-draw

The confirmed draw for the first round is below:

Steve Gow v Rocky Bullin
Richard Penfound v Trevor Robertson
Ted McIver v Kevin Botto
Tim Davies v Brad Shepherd
Andy Exall v Richard Gottfried
Martin Robertson v Peter Emmerson
Andy Booth v Jas Kukielka
Chris Harding v Jam Trubridge
Den Exall v Marion Homer
Seve Kukielka v Phil Exall
Matthew Harding v Ruth Bullin
Sean Homer v Jane Booth
Keith Kellard v John Moore

Anthony Pope, Bill Bullin and Trevor Exall all get byes and progress straight through to the quarter finals.

All first round matches to be played before the 31st May 2008.

Macmillan Cancer Support 'Annual Bowling Challenge'

For the third year running Macmillan Cancer Support are holding their 'Annual Bowling Challenge' at the Namco Station in Luton and the Ham & Eggers team will be taking part for the second time.

This year the team of four are looking to better their 6th place finish in 2007 by beating the current champions Plumbs DIY and taking the title.

More news on the tournament as we get it!


The Ham & Eggers pose for a team photo at the 2007 tournament.

Happy New Year!

Happy 2008 to Ham & Eggers everywhere!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year...

...to Ham & Eggers everywhere!

Gottfried Wins, Gottfried Wins, Gottfried Wins

(Luton, 21.12.07) In the battle of the UK's Top Finger Jousters Richard Gottfried held onto his one-year undefeated streak by beating his arch-rival Emily Gottfried 6-2 in Point Play Rules.

The match started well for Richard who scored two quick points by hitting both of Emily's legs, followed by a twisting neck shot for a further two. However, Emily fought back and hit a two-pointer with a questionable 'low chest' shot on Richard to bring her back into the game. But a win for Emily was not on the cards and by planting two well placed shots onto Emily's right leg Richard extended his undefeated streak to 48 wins since 21st December 2006.

Commenting on his well-earned victory Richard said "Emily has proven time and again to be a tough opponent and excellent proponent of the art of Finger Jousting, but I'm on a hot streak at the moment and it won't be long until I am crowned as the Undisputed Worlds Finger Jousting Champion."

Richard Gottfried's 'Pro' Finger Jousting Record (31.10.06 - 21.12.07)
Played 85
Won 80
Lost 4
Tied 1
% Won 94.12%


Photo - Hands locked and ready for battle.

Happy Birthday Ham & Egger Files!

Today is the first Birthday of the Ham & Egger Files website!

Over the past year the progress of the UK's top Obscure Sportsmen and Women have been charted on this site, with tales of heroic triumph and mediocrity in sports including Minigolf, Finger Jousting and Ten Pin Bowling.

Here's to the next year of sporting fun!

Finger Jousting - Match of the Year

In a match-up bigger than Ali vs Foreman, Andre vs Hogan, Ace Man vs Big Top or Hatton vs Mayweather, tomorrow (21/12/07) sees Gottfried vs Gottfried in a face-off between the UK's top two Finger Jousters.

Heading into the match Richard Gottfried is on a one-year, 47-bout undefeated streak that began on 21/12/06 when he beat tomorrow's opponent Emily Gottfried. The streak began on the same day he suffered only his 9th loss (4th of his 'Pro' Career), which ironically came at the hands (index finger?) of Emily herself.

Tale of the tape:
vs. Win-Loss Record - Emily 2 & 16, Richard 16 & 2
Richard Gottfried Career Win-Loss Record Stats
Played 98
Won 88
Lost 9
Tied 1
% Won 89.80%

Note:
Tomorrow's Match will be played to official World Finger Jousting Federation (WFJF)
'Point Play Rules' see below.

"In point play, different parts of the body count for different amounts of points. The legs and latent arm count as one point. The chest, back, and neck count as two points. The head counts as three points. Point play matches are played to six for tournaments, but when playing leisurely any number above two is allowed." http://www.fingerjoust.com/

Kalkalash

Homer Simpson: Now what do you have to wash that awful taste out of my mouth?
Vendor at the World Trade Center: Mountain Dew or crab juice.
Homer Simpson: Blecch! Ew! Sheesh! I'll take a crab juice.



Mmmm Crab juice, I mean Mountain Dew.

80p a can overseas import, great stuff!

Sir Cliff Richard...On Crazy Golf!

“The most bizarre tournament of the universe” Sir Cliff Richard commenting on the Virgin Money World Crazy Golf Championship 2007, on The One Show, BBC1, 7th December 2007.

“Richard’s Crazy Ambition” Beds Life

“Richard’s Crazy Ambition” Beds Life, The Newspaper for the University of Bedfordshire, December 2007 Issue.

Back Page Sports story in the Staff and Student Newspaper of my 'Alma mater' about my debut season, including a photo of me Putting on the 16th at Margate.

Virgin Media Crazy Golf Photos and Video

http://www.virginmedia.com/sport/galleries/crazy-golf.php

Transworld Sport Coverage, Channel 4, 10th November 07

Coverage of the Virgin Money World Crazy Golf Championships on Transworld Sport.

The One Show, BBC 1, 7th December 07

Coverage of the battle between the 76th and 77th best Crazy Golfers in the World, Colin Jackson and Phil Tufnell.



The link to The One Show Games is here:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/theoneshow/article/2007/10/cj_highlandgames.shtml

The link to the BBC player is here:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/check/theoneshow/ram/071207_golf?size=16x9&bgc=6699CC&nbram=1&bbram=1

European Tour Weekly - Official Link

05 Dec 2007 14:00

'ETW 496 - World Crazy Golf Championships - Feature - We catch up with all the action from the World Crazy Golf Championships in Hastings.'

Official Link to the Sky Sports 3 Programme 'European Tour Weekly' feature on the Virgin Money World Crazy Golf Championships.

http://www.europeantour.com/publish.sps?pagegid=%7BD872AA1B-60AB-4F23-95F2-E247C40F85FC%7D&assetid=566093

“Virgin Money World Crazy Golf Coverage” European Tour Weekly, Sky Sports 3

“Virgin Money World Crazy Golf Coverage” from the TV Programme European Tour Weekly, Sky Sports 3 on 5th December 2007.

You can see me and 'The Coach' at the 3min 19sec mark!

'Ace Gottfried gets 12th place finish'

Story on page 69 of the 14th November 2007 editions of the Luton News and Dunstable Gazette regarding my achievements in the BMGA Kent Open and on the 2007 BMGA Tour.

End of BMGA 2007 Tour Minigolf Report

Press Information
For Immediate Release
7th November 2007

End of BMGA 2007 Tour Minigolf Report

Luton Minigolfer Richard Gottfried sunk the final putt of his debut season on the British Minigolf Association 2007 Tour at the BMGA Kent Open last weekend (4th November). Richard finished strongly in the season finale, carding a score of 124 over three rounds, just 12 shots off the tournament winner Sean Homer, and placing 12th of 32 players in a field containing some of the best Minigolfers in Great Britain and the world.

Richard, 27 is now ranked as the 34th best Minigolfer in the BMGA 2007 Order of Merit after gaining 527 Ranking Points since making his first appearance in the BMGA British Masters in April. In total Richard has competed in ten tournaments and played 660 holes of competitive Minigolf on the 2007 Tour, which has seen him travel to courses in Brighton, Margate, Hastings, Southend and Warwick.

Among his best results this season were his 4th place in the BMGA Midlands Invitational Tournament (MIT) and his 5th place finish in the BMGA Players Championship.

Richard said “I feel this has been a great year of competition for me, I have played in some big tournaments against the top players. There have been many great moments for me this season including making the cut for the second day of the BMGA British Open; my 4th and 5th place finishes in the MIT and the BMGA Players Championship, and taking part in the World Crazy Golf Championships. I am looking forward to the start of play on the 2008 Tour and some more top ten finishes.”

Richard added “My next three goals in my Minigolf career are to win a tournament on the BMGA Tour, reach the top 20 of the BMGA British Rankings and to play for the Great Britain Team in a World or European Championship.”

Veterans of the BMGA Tour have also noticed Richard’s talents, with Four-Time World Crazy Golf Champion Tim ‘Ace Man’ Davies calling Richard “The most promising talent to arrive on the British Minigolf scene since me."

Richard’s first tournaments of the 2008 Tour include the Planet Hastings Crazy Golf Club Open, the BMGA Matchplay Knockout Tournament and the BMGA Irish Open in Belfast.

Below is a photo of Richard putting on the 16th hole 'Shark's Teeth’ at Margate.

Die Bart (not from The Simpsons)!?!

Can you guess the haulage company?



Clue: It's not Christian Salveson or Norbert Dentressangle.

Driving the DLR!

Isn't the Docklands Light Railway great!?

Scorecards Galore

A wide array of Scorecards from the 37 Minigolf courses played this year!

'Crazy for Loving You?'

In the November issue of Luton & Dunstable At Large Magazine there is a feature on Crazy Golf and top Luton Crazy Golfers Richard and Emily Gottfried.

Check it out here:
http://www.luton-at-large.co.uk/