My last pre-pandemic meal out

I had my last pre-coronavirus pandemic lockdown meal out a year ago today. In fact it was the last time I dined out full stop as eating 100% gluten free is tough enough at the best of times, let alone during a pandemic.

What a fine last meal out this was

The steak and eggs I had at Remedy Kitchen in Manchester were superb and I can't wait until it's safe to get back out and eat there again.

Puttshack mini golf to open at The Oracle in Reading

Puttshack will be opening a new indoor minigolf venue at The Oracle shopping centre in Reading, Berkshire.

The new Puttshack mini golf location will be created in the former House of Fraser department store.

Playing at Puttshack White City in October 2019

Visit the Puttshack website for more information.

Minigolf is a big part of the retailtainment boom, with courses opening as standalone entertainment activities, or as part of large shoppingtainment leisure offerings in shopping malls, high streets and retail parks.

Boom: Battle Bar Wandsworth

Construction is underway on a new Boom: Battle Bar site in Wandsworth, London.

Boom: Battle Bars are home to a range of competitive socialising games including crazy golf (crazier golf), shuffleboard, axe throwing, darts and more.

There are Boom: Battle Bars in Norwich and Cardiff and plans for others in Liverpool, Glasgow, Oxford, Coventry, West Thurrock, Eastbourne, Aberdeen and Aldgate.

Check out the Boom: Battle Bar website for more information.

Winning at the Digital City Expo

I attended my last 'real world' physical event at the Marketing Show North at the Digital City Expo at Manchester Central a year ago today.

What a difference a year has made.

One of the exhibitors, Acquia, had a darts game set up to attract visitors and I had a few throws and ended up winning the top prize with a 'Bullseye-esque' score of 101 with three darts!

The last three darts I threw in the outside world. I've been playing a lot of soft-tip darts at home during the lockdowns

It'll be interesting to see when the next events will be able to take place and what they'll look like. I have a few pencilled in my diary for 2022 already.

The last train

I last travelled on a train a year ago today!

A train at Stockport railway station on the 11th March 2020

The journey was a short one - from Stockport to Manchester Piccadilly and back - as I was heading into town for the Marketing Show North at the Digital City Expo at Manchester Central. That was the last event I attended before the coronavirus pandemic lockdown.

I wonder where my next train journey will take take me and when it'll be?

Boom: Battle Bar at The O2

A new Boom: Battle Bar is opening at The O2 in London.

Boom: Battle Bar venues are home to a range of competitive socialising games including crazy golf (crazier golf), shuffleboard, axe throwing, darts and more.

There are Boom: Battle Bars in Norwich and Cardiff and plans for others in Liverpool, Glasgow, Oxford, Coventry, West Thurrock, Eastbourne, Aberdeen, Aldgate, Wandsworth, Hull, Manchester and Newcastle.

Check out the Boom: Battle Bar website for more information.

Minigolf at The O2

We played minigolf at The O2 back in December 2010. That was a pop-up Q-Golf minigolf course set-up for that December and January 2011. The layout was the 210th played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

My last pre-pandemic games of dodgeball

I played my last pre-coronavirus pandemic lockdown games of dodgeball a year ago today.

In my last Tuesday night session with the Cheadle & Gatley Griffins Dodgeball Club I played 5, won 4 and lost 1.

I'm really looking forward to returning to dodgeball action when it's once again safe to do so.

My 2020 record stood at 18 games played with 9 wins and 9 losses.

My all-time Dodgeball Win-Loss Record (2005-2020) stands at 987 games played, 451 wins, 492 losses and 44 tied games.

Minigolf scoring and loyalty apps

A look at minigolf, crazy golf and adventure golf scorecard and loyalty apps.

On our travels to 956 miniature golf courses we've seen a number of venues that have introduced a mobile app to compliment or replace the traditional paper scorecard. Some of these apps are really good and help to enhance the experience.

The minigolf apps we've found offer a range of scoring functions, loyalty and reward schemes, games, reviews, contests, information and tips.

Relatively new minigolf venues including Puttshack and Puttstars use electronic scoring systems with micro-chipped balls, or electronic score-pads and screens at the course.

There are a number of minigolf, crazy golf and adventure golf apps available on Android and iPhone (all apps are for UK courses unless otherwise stated):

• Adventure Island Mini Golf in Birmingham
• Bangolf Arena tournament scoring systems
• Congo River Golf Scorecard App - eight locations in the USA
• Dinton Adventure Golf
• Eingelocht: Minigolf Scorecard
• Four Ashes Golf Centre in Dorridge, Solihull
• Ghetto Golf
• GlowGolf® Score-App
• Golf Kingdom in Romford - home of Moby Golf
• Hastings Adventure Golf
• Hollywood Drive-In Golf, Orlando, Florida
• International Pitch & Putt Association (IPPA)
• Inky’s Mini Golf at Sirenian Bay in Belize
• Lost World Adventure Golf in Hemsby
• Mini Golf App
• Mini Golf Score Card
• Monster Mini Golf Scorecard App in the USA
• My Mini Golf Scorecard
• Nyborg Minigolf in Denmark
• Oasis Fun in Bournemouth
• Paradise Adventure Golf in Täby Centrum, Sweden
• Paradise Island Adventure Golf in Cheshire Oaks, Derby, Glasgow, Livingston, Manchester, Plymouth, Rushden Lakes and Sheffield
• Peter Pan Mini Golf, USA
• Play Minigolf App - four courses in Sweden, Germany, Denmark, Portugal, Czech Republic, Italy, Netherlands and Belgium
• Playing tips for mini golf
• Popstroke, USA
• Puttstars
• Rainforest Adventure Golf in Dundrum, Ireland
• Smugglers Cove Adventure Golf in Bournemouth
• Stagecoach Greens, San Francisco, USA
• Swingers Crazy Golf
• Teezers Retro Golf in Coventry
• The Clubhouse Stoke
• The Putter King game
• The Putting Penguin minigolf review site
• Volcano Falls Adventure Golf in Castleford
• We Are Minigolf

Do you know of any other minigolf apps, games or scoring systems? What do you think of them? Do you use them when you visit a course? Do you have a favourite? Let me know in the comments below.

Maryland Chicken in Leicester

Maryland Chicken in Leicester, June 2019.

Among the various fried chicken shops we've seen other US states represented at Arizona Fried Chicken, Dallas Fried Chicken, West Virginia Fried Chicken, Kansas Fried Chicken, Oregon Fried Chicken and Alaska Fried Chicken.

We've also seen a Toronto Fried Chicken shop in Rochdale and quite a few 'KFCs'.

What's the most obscure US State or North American place you've seen used in a chicken shop name?

My last pre-pandemic game of minigolf

I played my last pre-coronavirus pandemic lockdown game of minigolf at Junkyard Crazy Golf in Manchester a year ago today.

Check out my blog post taking a look back at our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour in 2020.

Putt18 World Pro League Results - Season Two, Week Four

Results from week four of the Putt18 World Pro League.

I teed-off in week four of the Putt18 World Pro League on Saturday evening and shot rounds of 76, 79, 82 and 72 for a total of 309 and 13 points.

I'm currently in 14th place of 21 players with a points total of 62.

You can watch my rounds on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour Facebook Page.

Matt Ansley (NZL), Dave Gomm (GBR) and John Ansley (NZL) are at the top of the league table.

I'm in 15th place of 21 players on the strokeplay leaderboard.

Putt18 World Pro League

21 players from the UK, Australia, New Zealand and the USA are competing in the seven event series to find the world's best putter on the Putt18 Golf Putting Game System.

Visit the Putt18 website for more information.

Jurassic Adventure Golf at The Needles on the Isle of Wight

Here's a look at the Jurassic Adventure Golf course at The Needles on the Isle of Wight.

My mate and fellow minigolf fan Matt Dodd sent me a couple of snaps he took during his round on the 11-hole Jurassic Adventure Golf course at The Needles on the Isle of Wight last summer.

Visit The Needles website for more information, opening times and prices.

The Jurassic Adventure Golf course at The Needles is a course we're yet to play on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

New Boom: Battle Bar at Goodman's Fields in London

There are plans for a new Boom: Battle Bar at Goodman's Fields in Aldgate, London.

A new Boom: Battle Bar is planned to open at the Goodman's Fields home and leisure development in Aldgate, London.

The venue will be home to a Crazy Golf (Crazier Golf) course, axe throwing, shuffleboard and more. It is planning to open in the latter part of 2021.

Boom: Battle Bars

There are Boom: Battle Bars in Norwich and Cardiff and plans for others in Liverpool, Glasgow, Oxford, Coventry, West Thurrock, Eastbourne and Aberdeen.

Visit the Boom: Battle Bar website for more information.

Retailtainment and crazy golf

A number of shopping malls, town centres, retail parks and mixed-use developments are adding minigolf, crazy golf, adventure golf and other experiential entertainment and activity leisure offerings to their sites to attract and retain customers.

World Book Day 2021

Happy World Book Day!

Today is World Book Day. To mark the occasion check out my minigolf marketing ebook - The Minigolfer's Guide to Marketing.

Created after years of playing, promoting and consulting the ebook gives players, courses, federations, associations and clubs a guide to the world of marketing.

You can buy The Minigolfer's Guide to Marketing from Amazon and Kobo.

Other minigolf books

While you're at it I also recommend checking out the following books about miniature golf:

• Amazing Strokes by Gretchen Smith
• Tilting at Windmills: How I Tried to Stop Worrying and Love Sport by Andy Miller
• The Path Behind the Green Jacket by Olivia Prokopová
• 10 Courses for 10 Years by The Putting Penguin
• Mini Golf by photographer Simon Martin

There are a number of other books about the game listed at the Crazy Golf Museum.

New Putt in the Park on Clapham Common

There are plans for a new Putt in the Park miniature golf venue on Clapham Common in London.

The proposed new Putt in the Park location will include two minigolf courses and café. The business will also be providing new toilet block to serve that area of the Common.

Visit the Putt In The Park website for more information.

The first Putt In The Park course we played was in Wandsworth Park, London back in 2013. The Battersea Park Putt in the Park course was the 650th we visited in the UK and 671st overall.

Playing at Putt in the Park Battersea in 2015

We're yet to play the Putt in the Park courses in Acton Park, London and Colchester, Essex.

Teeing-off in week 4 of the Putt18 World Pro League

I'll be playing my next rounds in the Putt18 World Pro League this Saturday, 6th March at 6pm. You can watch my rounds on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour Facebook Page.

I'm currently ranked in 13th place of 21 players with a total of 49 points from the three events so far this season.

Matt Ansley of New Zealand is the league leader, with Dave Gomm of GB in second place. John Ansley, NZ is in third spot.

In the individual strokeplay table I'm in 14th place with a total of 924 shots.

New Putt in the Park at Gunnersbury Park

There are plans for a new Putt in the Park miniature golf course at Gunnersbury Park in London.

The new Putt in the Park location at Gunnersbury Park & Museum would also be home to a café.

Visit the Putt In The Park and Gunnersbury Park & Museum websites for more information.

The first Putt In The Park course we played was in Wandsworth Park, London back in 2013. The Battersea Park Putt in the Park course was the 650th we visited in the UK and 671st overall on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour when we called in for a game in 2015.

We've still got to play the Putt in the Park courses in Acton Park, London and Colchester, Essex on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Gluten free cakes and bakes from the Wildcraft Bakery

As we haven't been able to get over visit Leeds or go to any gluten free food fairs during the pandemic we've recently made two orders from the Wildcraft Bakery in Leeds. Both were superb.

For our first order we went for a mix of sweet and savoury items including whoopie pies, cookies and cheese rolls.

For the second order we ordered one of each of the doughnuts (donuts) on offer in that particular 'doughnut drop'.

Check out the Wildcraft Bakery website for more information on the products and how to order.

We're looking forward to making our next order. It's brilliant that the Wildcraft Bakery is 100% gluten free. What do you think we should get this time?

Crazy Golf in London

A look back at the CLUB GOLF pop-up minigolf course at Coal Drops Yard in King's Cross, London.

My last trip down to London took place on the 25th February last year and I was lucky enough to get a game in on the pop-up Crazy Golf course at Coal Drops Yard in King's Cross.

It was the last new minigolf course I played before the coronavirus pandemic lockdown.

The 9-hole rave-inspired art installation crazy golf course was the 948th course visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour and the 542nd played.

Artists Baker & Borowski created the 9-hole themed Crazy Golf layout inspired by the rave culture in the King's Cross area back in the 1980's and 1990's.

I shot a round of 23 in my game - the scorecard noted that the maximum score allowed was 63! A seven on each hole.

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New Adventure Golf course at Golf Rossendale

There are plans for a new Adventure Golf course to be created at Golf Rossendale in Rawtenstall, Lancashire.

The new course is part of a redevelopment of the venue by American Golf.

Visit the Golf Rossendale website for more information.

We're looking forward to visiting on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. Rawtenstall is fairly local to us here in the North West.

Jurassic Links Adventure Golf at Kingsway Golf Centre

A new Jurassic Links Adventure Golf course is opening at Kingsway Golf Centre in Melbourn, Cambridgeshire this Spring.

Visit the Jurassic Links Adventure Golf website for more information.

The 18-hole Jurassic Links Adventure Golf course is being built by the team at HM Adventure Golf.

Crazy Golfing at Kingsway Golf Centre

We've played minigolf at Kingsway Golf Centre on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour before. The golf centre was home to a Crazy Golf course that became the 200th we visited on our travels in 2009. That layout was replaced with the Himalayas Putting Course in 2010.

Minigolf in Melbourn

Melbourn has been a bit of a hotbed of minigolf over the years. As well as the crazy golf, putting course and adventure golf courses at Kingsway Golf Centre the village has been home to pop-up miniature golf courses at the annual fete and The Dolphin pub was once home to a 4-hole crazy golf course!

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Putt18 World Pro League Results - Season Two, Week Three

I teed-off in week three of the Putt18 World Pro League on Saturday evening.

I shot rounds of 75, 72, 75 and 76 for a total of 298.

You can watch my rounds on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour Facebook Page.

Putt18 World Pro League

21 players from the UK, Australia, New Zealand and the USA are competing in the seven event series to find the world's best putter on the Putt18 Golf Putting Game System.

Check out the Putt18 website for more information.

Monorail, monothingy

One of my favourite monorails.

But where is it?

One of the monorails I've travelled on during my travels

New indoor crazy golf course in Billericay

A new crazy golf course and escape room is planned to open in Billericay, Essex.

The indoor venue will be located in the former Argos store in the town centre.

Check out the Hackers website for more information.

Retailtainment and minigolf

A number of shopping malls, town centres and retail parks are adding minigolf, crazy golf, adventure golf and other experiential entertainment and activity leisure offerings to their sites to attract and retain customers.

Boom: Battle Bar Aberdeen

There are plans for a new Boom: Battle Bar in Aberdeen.

The indoor competitive socialising venue in the former Aberdeen Market will be home to a crazy golf course and other games including axe throwing, curling, pool, shuffleboard and darts.

Visit the Boom: Battle Bar website for more information.

Retailtainment and crazy golf

A number of shopping malls, town centres and retail parks are adding minigolf, crazy golf, adventure golf and other experiential entertainment and activity leisure offerings to their sites to attract and retain customers.

New minigolf course in Peterhead

There are plans for a new minigolf course in Victoria Park, Peterhead, Aberdeenshire.

The 9-hole minigolf course will be created on former bowling greens in the park. The community park will also be home to a BMX track, exercise area, new pavilion and more.

The project is being led by Peterhead Area Community Trust (PACT) and further information on the Victoria Park project can be found on the trust's website.

We haven't been up to Scotland for a few years and are looking forward to returning to visit some more courses on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Putt18 World Pro League - Season Two, Week Three

I'll be teeing-off in week three of the Putt18 World Pro League at 6pm on Saturday 20th February.

You can watch my rounds live via the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour Facebook Page.

Putt18 World Pro League

21 players from the UK, Australia, New Zealand and the USA are competing in the seven event series to find the world's best putter on the Putt18 Golf Putting Game System.

I am currently in 13th place on 24 points and in 15th place in the strokeplay standings.

Visit the Putt18 website for more information.

Toys R Us in Ipswich

A look at the old Toys R Us store in Ipswich, Suffolk.

Many thanks to my sister-in-law Annette for sending over a snap of the closed Toys R Us store in the Interchange Retail Park at Copdock Mill, Ipswich.

This sign is still up. But for how much longer?

Sadly Toys R Us closed in the UK in April 2018. Luckily there are still remnants of the brand on some retail parks in the UK. I worked in the Gipsy Lane store in Luton, Bedfordshire back in the year 2000.

Check out the blog posts below about other former Toys R Us stores:

• Central Retail Park in Manchester
• Gemini Retail Park in Warrington
• Festival retail park in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent
• Deepdale shopping centre in Preston
• Wyvern Retail Park in Derby
• Riverside Retail Park in Nottingham

Swing by Golfbaren minigolf in Stockholm, Sweden

We visited Swing by Golfbaren in Stockholm, Sweden in February 2018 to celebrate the first birthday of the course. It doesn't seem like that long ago!

The indoor minigolf course and speakeasy was the landmark 800th course visit overall on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour and our 31st overseas.

Head to the Swing by Golfbaren website for more information.

It's going to be superb to play there again in the future.

We managed to visit a total of nine miniature golf courses during our 42 hours in Sweden!

Boom: Battle Bar heading to Eastbourne

A Boom: Battle Bar is opening in the seaside town of Eastbourne.

There are plans to create a Boom: Battle Bar in Eastbourne, East Sussex.

Boom: Battle Bars are competitive socialising locations and home to indoor minigolf courses (known as crazier golf), axe throwing, electric darts, shuffleboard and more.

There are Boom: Battle Bars in Norwich and Cardiff and plans for others in Liverpool, Glasgow, Oxford, Coventry and West Thurrock.

Check out the Boom: Battle Bar Eastbourne Facebook Page for more information.

New golf venue planned for Glasgow

A new golf facility is planned to open in Glasgow next year.

The R&A has submitted plans for what it describes as a new community golf facility to open on the site of the public golf course at Lethamhill in Glasgow.

The golf centre will include a 9-hole golf course, a par-3 course, an adventure golf course, a driving range, putting greens and a short game area.

The venue will also include a café, indoor golf simulators and more.

Further information can be found on the R&A website.