Junkyard Golf in Camden, London

A new Junkyard Golf indoor crazy golf venue is opening in Camden, London this summer.

The team at Junkyard Golf are opening a new London crazy golf venue, with their largest site being created in Camden. The location is set to open in August.

Visit the Junkyard Golf website for more information.

Obstacle Golf at Hope Park in Keswick

A look at the Obstacle Golf course at Hope Park in Keswick, Cumbria.

We've just returned from a long weekend in the Lake District where we revisited some courses on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

One of them was the Obstacle Golf course at Hope Park in Keswick, Cumbria.

Obstacle Golf - aka Crazy Golf - at Hope Park. What a view!

There's also a grass Putting layout and a Pitch & Putt at Hope Park (and Boules) and there are some wonderful views of the Skiddaw mountain from the courses.

We visited the park back in April 2012 and played the Putting course on that occasion.

Today is Summerween!

Happy Summerween.

Summerween is celebrated annually on the second to last Friday of June.

A Summerween Jack-o-Melon

The quirky holiday originated in Gravity Falls, Oregon and in some calendars is also (always!) marked on the 22nd June.

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

Crazy Putting Challenge at Hamptworth Golf Club

A look back at the Crazy Putting Challenge minigolf course at Hamptworth Golf Club - the 875th course we visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Crazy Putting Challenge minigolf course at Hamptworth Golf Club (May 2019)

Our 2019 trip to Southampton saw us visit 18 more courses on our tour, playing eight of them. One of the courses we had a round on was the Crazy Putting Challenge at Hamptworth Golf Club in Wiltshire.

Minigolf at The Light in Redhill, Surrey

There's a new 10-hole movie-themed minigolf course at The Light in Redhill, Surrey.

The new minigolf course at the entertainment venue is planned to open on Friday 23rd June.

Visit The Light Redhill website for more information.

Happy Summerween

Summerween is celebrated annually on the 22nd June.

A Summerween Jack-o-Melon

The quirky holiday originated in Gravity Falls, Oregon and in some calendars is also marked on the second to last Friday of the month of June. That will be tomorrow, the 23rd.

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

Stonehenge The BIG Mini Golf in Hemsby, Norfolk

A look at the Stonehenge-themed minigolf course in Hemsby, Norfolk (May 2022).

Stonehenge The BIG Mini Golf course was the 174th course played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour in June 2010 when it was a 15-hole layout. We first visited it in May 2009 when it was a 12-hole course. It's now an 18-hole course.

Here are photos of the 18-hole course from May 2022.

Here are two videos of us playing the course in June 2010.

Here are some videos of the course on our most recent visit in May 2022.

Happy birthday Putt-Putt - 69 years old today

Today marks 69 years since the world's first Putt-Putt course opened.

The first Putt-Putt Golf course was set-up by Don Clayton in Fayetteville, North Carolina, USA on this day 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.

The Putt-Putt miniature golf course in Three Anchor Bay in Moullie Point / Sea Point, Cape Town, South Africa. Photo by PJ Goedhals

Ephemera from the Putt-Putt Golf centre at Moullie Point in South Africa. From PJ Goedhals

A Putt-Putt Postcard from South Africa

A selection of Putt-Putt tokens

On the competitive side of the game, Putt-Putt tournaments have been played since 1959. You can read about the history of the PPA and APA on the Professional Putters Association website.

A Putt-Putt Puzzle of a very crazy Miniature Golf course. Published by Hallmark Cards Inc. Many thanks to our friend 'Hacksaw' Jon Drexler for sending it across the pond to live in the Crazy Golf Museum

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.

Electric Greens Crazy Golf at The Tivoli in Cambridge

A look at the Electric Greens Crazy Golf courses at The Tivoli in Cambridge.

We recently swung by The Tivoli indoor entertainment venue in Cambridge and took a look at the two 9-hole minigolf courses there.

Visit The Tivoli website for more information and booking details.

We arrived in time to have a drink, but not to have a round on either course.

One to play another day on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

The Tivoli is a former cinema - and in the Art Deco style. It's a very nice looking venue.

Tredegar Park Mini Golf is reopening

The Tredegar Park Mini Golf course in Newport, Wales is reopening on Saturday 24th June.

Find out more on the Tredegar Park Mini Golf Facebook Page.

The Tredegar Park Mini Golf course was the 192nd played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour back in August 2010. It was one of the courses played as part of the 2010 Cystadleuaeth Minigolff Cymraeg (Welsh Minigolf Tournament).

Hole 9 on the course was an absolute round killer! I wonder what it's like now...?

It'll be interesting to see how the course plays all these years later. From the photos on the course's Facebook Page it looks in nice condition.

Where in the world is this minigolf course?

Can you identify the location of this miniature golf course visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour?

Gremlins

The hit film Gremlins was released in the USA on this day in 1984.

What a day at the cinema that must've been - with Ghostbusters out on the same day!

Gremlins causing a scene at the Totally Stockport Comic Con last year

Gizmo's in Morecambe, Lancashire is open from 4pm to late - I hope it closes before midnight

Ghostbusters Day

Happy Ghostbusters Day!

The blockbuster film was released in the USA on this day in 1984.

Ghostbusting in Urmston in 2019

Check out my Ghostbusters-related blog posts.

Museum Week 2023

This week is Museum Week.

Since 2014 MuseumWeek has grown to include over 60,000 participants from 100+ countries. It has become the first virtual, worldwide cultural event across social media.

MuseumWeek is an annual offline and online event based on the mechanism 7 days, 7 topics, 7 hashtags.

Find out more on the Museum Week website.

The Crazy Golf Museum

As the Curator of the Crazy Golf Museum it's always nice to be able to support museum initiatives such as MuseumWeek.

The Crazy Golf Museum is the world's first virtual crazy golf museum - a worldwide archive of miniature golf memories, histories and ephemera.

The Crazy Golf Museum

Did you know:

• The world's first Miniature Golf course was created at St Andrews, Scotland in 1867. The Himalayas is still there now and is a real pleasure to play.
• The first minigolf course in the USA opened in 1916. James Barber opened the 'Thistle Dhu' layout in Pinehurst, NC.
• A Miniature Golf contest was part of the Olympic Games at the 1904 St Louis Games.
• The very first Crazy Golf course in the UK opened on South Parade in Skegness, Lincolnshire, England.
• The first artificial miniature golf course open in the USA in 1926 when Garnet Carter created the 'Tom Thumb' miniature golf course near Lookout Mountain in Chattanooga, TN.
• The first National Tom Thumb Golf Championship took place on the 23rd October 1930. 
• The first Putt-Putt Golf course was set-up by Don Clayton in Fayetteville, North Carolina, USA back in 1954.
• National Miniature Golf Day always falls on the second Saturday in May.
• Miniature Golf Day is always on the 21st of September.

Visit the Crazy Golf Museum website and check out these Crazy Golf Museum-related blog posts for more info.

Adventure Golf at Bristol Golf Centre in Hambrook

There will soon be two Adventure Golf courses at Bristol Golf Centre in Hambrook, Bristol.

Bristol Golf Centre in Hambrook is home to Kong Adventure Golf and will soon add an Around the World themed layout to the venue.

We looked for the original Pirate Bay Adventure Golf course / Bristol Golf Centre on a Crazy World of Minigolf Tour road-trip back in November 2012 and couldn't find it at all. Hopefully on our next trip there we'll be able to better navigate!

Visit the Bristol Golf Centre and Caddy Gilmore's websites for more information.

Putt Above Mini-Golf in Bournemouth

There are plans for a new Putt Above Mini-Golf centre to open in Bournemouth, Dorset.

Bournemouth could soon be home to a new minigolf course as a Putt Above Mini-Golf centre is planned to open in the former Argos shop in the town centre.

The venue would be Putt Above's second location, following the created of their high-tech mini golf venue in Dudley, West Midlands.

We haven't had a chance to play Putt Above's version of the game yet. It sounds like they've got an interesting twist on the minigolf experience. Rather than moving from hole to hole as you play the course, games at Putt Above are played out on the same 'hole', but with different interactive elements shown on the digital 'lane'!

Visit the Putt Above website for more information.

New Adventure Golf at Dobbies Garden Centre in Peterborough

A new Roman-themed Adventure Golf course has opened at Dobbies Garden Centre in Peterborough.

Dobbies Garden Centre in Peterborough is now home to two miniature golf layouts.

The existing 12-hole course at Dobbies Garden Centre in Peterborough is still in place, with the new 18-hole Roman-themed Adventure Golf course sitting next to it.

Visit the Peterborough Minigolf website for more information about the Roman Golf Empire course.