Crazy Golf at Coate Water Country Park in Swindon

Playing Crazy Golf at the 750th course on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

On Friday 4th August we hit another big minigolf milestone as the 750th course was visited on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour since our odyssey began back in September 2006.

At the 750th miniature golf course on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

The Crazy Golf course at Coate Water Country Park was in good condition and proving popular on my visit. It's an older style of course with nods to the continental European 'Beton' style of minigolf. The layout reminded me of the Crazy Golf course at Lister Gardens in Lyme Regis, with some very similar hole designs.

A look at holes 11-13 at Coate Water Country Park

In my round I scored a 48 - 21 out and 27 in. I was close to getting some holes-in-one too.

Holes 3-5 on the Crazy Golf course

After my fun round I had a go on the 9-hole Putting Green which was in excellent condition. I scored a 19.

On the green

A look at the Putting Green at Coate Water Country Park

I didn't have time to play the 18-hole Pitch & Putt course on this occasion, but it looked like a superb course.

Hole 1 on the Pitch & Putt

The 18-hole Crazy Golf course was £3 for a round, the Putting Green was £1 and the Pitch & Putt was £4. Great prices. Check out the Coate Water Country Park website for more information.

At the 750th course visited on our travels

Photos of the Crazy Golf course at Coate Water Country Park.

Hole 1

Hole 2

Hole 2

Hole 2

Hole 3

Hole 4

Hole 5

Hole 5

Hole 5

Hole 5

Hole 6

Hole 7

Hole 8

Hole 8

Hole 8

Hole 8

Hole 9

Hole 10

Hole 10

Hole 10

Hole 11

Hole 12

Hole 12

Hole 13

Hole 13 

Hole 13

Hole 12's green and the jump on hole 13

Hole 14

Hole 14

Hole 14

Hole 15

Hole 15

Hole 15

Hole 16

Hole 16

Hole 17

Hole 17

Hole 17

Hole 18

There's also a miniature railway at Coate Water Country Park. I didn't have time to see it this time, but look forward to having a go on it in the future.

On the 17th September last year we visited the 700th course on our travels at Vickersway Park in Northwich, Cheshire. 28 of the courses we've visited have been overseas and the 700th visited in the UK was at Haigh Woodland Park in Wigan back in April.

Related blog posts:
- Swindon
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

Link:
- Coate Water Country Park

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New dinosaur Adventure Golf course heading to the Trafford Golf Centre

New Adventure Golf course at the Trafford Golf Centre in Manchester.

A jurassic adventure golf course is heading to the Trafford Golf Centre in Greater Manchester. The new 18-hole DinoFalls Adventure Golf course will be built at the golf facility which sits just off the M60.

It's not the first time the Trafford Golf Centre has been home to a minigolf course. Back in the late noughties there was a 9-hole Championship Miniature Golf course on the site. A course I won two tournaments on in 2009 - the Mini Masters and Mini Open!

We're looking forward to visiting and playing the new dinosaur adventure golf course at the Trafford Golf Centre as part of our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour to visit all the courses in the UK. It'll be very local to us! Since 2006 we've been to 752 courses. The previous minigolf course at the Trafford Golf Centre was the 84th we played.

Playing minigolf at the Trafford Golf Centre during the Mini Open tournament in 2009

As well as the new DinoFalls Adventure Golf course, Trafford is also home to the 36-hole indoor courses at Paradise Island Adventure Golf at the intu Trafford Centre and an 18-hole Crazy Golf course at Wythenshawe Park. In central Manchester you can play at Junkyard Golf, although this month the indoor Crazy Golf course is moving from its location in Piccadilly to a new home in the Northern Quarter.

There are also minigolf courses in Bolton and Wigan which are worth a visit.

Related blog posts:
- Dinosaur
- Manchester
- Adventure Golf
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

Link:
- Trafford Golf Centre

New Hastings Minigolf Caddie Club to raise funds for local charity

Hastings Adventure Golf launches loyalty club and teams-up with charity partner.

Hastings Adventure Golf is using the launch of its new loyalty club, the Caddie Club, to raise funds for local charity – The Winkle Club.

With the help of a little brown bear, Caddie Bear, who arrived in Hastings last week, a fun photo caption competition is running online with every entry increasing the cash donation to the Winkle Club charity.

The competition, running weekly on Facebook, will see Caddie Bear in some precarious and fun situations. The public can suggest a photo caption with each suggestion raising more cash for the charity. The winning caption each week will also scoop free golf passes. Visit the Hastings Adventure Golf Facebook Page for more info.

Stuart Homewood from the Winkle Club & Simon Tompkins with Caddie

Stuart Homewood of the Winkle Club charity said “Big thanks to Hastings Adventure Golf for giving us the opportunity. We are hoping to raise some much-needed cash for several local good causes.”

Simon Tompkins of Hastings Adventure Golf, said “We wanted to help the Winkle Club charity and its work with many local charities so what better way than getting our mischievous Caddie Bear to help. He’s a friendly fellow so we are asking the public to throw us their best and funniest captions and every captions results in a donation to the charity.”

The Winkle Club is an internationally famous charitable organisation formed by Hastings fishermen to help the less fortunate families of Hastings Old Town. Among the events and activities they organise is an annual Putting Competition held at the Hastings Adventure Golf complex.

The Caddie Club loyalty scheme is open to everyone who downloads the free app and registers. Details of the app can be found on the Hastings Adventure Golf website.

Links:
- Hastings Adventure Golf website
- Hastings Adventure Golf on Facebook
- Hastings Winkle Club

Related blog posts:
- Hastings Adventure Golf
- Mini Golf App
- Hastings

Putting Greens at Ardencote Golf Club

While on a spa weekend away in the midlands Emily stumbled upon two grass Putting Greens at Ardencote Golf Club.

Course number 748 on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

Course number 749

Bingo in Stockport

We had a great night out at the Bingo last night. It was my first game since playing at Pontin's Prestatyn in 2014.

Having a lotto fun at the Bingo in Stockport

I was interested to see the advances in what is essentially a simple game along with the introduction of electronic gaming tablets. Gala Bingo is certainly a slick operation.

I used to love playing Bingo as a kid with my Grandma. Emily and I used to be members at Gala when we were students too.

It's always nice having a game at classic seafront Amusement Arcade Bingo when we see them as well.

The Stockport venue was really big and colourful, with friendly staff. We're looking forward to returning for another few games soon. Next time I might play classic-style with paper tickets and a big dabber.

Link:
- Gala Bingo

Related blog posts:
- Bingo
- Stockport

Minigolf in Norfolk

Details of miniature golf, crazy golf and adventure golf courses in Norfolk.

We've been visiting Norfolk for a number of years and Great Yarmouth was one of the first seaside resorts we went to on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour back in February 2007. Unfortunately on that occasion all of the courses there were closed for the season! We've since been back to the resort and other parts of the county and had some great rounds of minigolf.

The Crazy Golf course at Pops Meadow in Gorleston on Sea became the 100th course visited when we swung by on the 10th May 2009

As of today we've visited 749 courses since September 2006. Of these 721 have been in the UK, with 28 overseas in eleven countries. There are approximately 40 courses in Norfolk and we have visited 32 courses of these so far. Twelve were closed / out of season at the time of our visit. Over the years we have visited eight courses in Great Yarmouth - some of which are no longer there.

At the Adventure Island Golf Course in Mundesley

  

With a Humpty at Merrivale Model Village in Great Yarmouth

Playing Crazy Golf at Eaton Park in Norwich

Playing one of the partially outdoors holes at the indoor Crazy Golf course found within the old Windmill Theatre in Great Yarmouth

At Lost World Adventure Golf in Hemsby

Putting in Cromer

Playing Crazy Golf in Hunstanton

Courses played since our first visit to Norfolk in 2007:

• Cromer (Cromer Putting) - Putting Green
• Gorleston-on-Sea (Pop's Meadow Putting Green) - Minigolf
• Great Yarmouth (Hollywood Adventure Golf, Windmill Theatre) - Indoor Adventure Golf
• Great Yarmouth (Merrivale Model Village) - Crazy Golf
• Great Yarmouth (Pirates Cove) - Adventure Golf
• Great Yarmouth (Pleasure Beach) - Adventure Golf
• Hemsby - Lost World Adventure Golf
• Hemsby (Stonehenge) - BIG Mini Golf
• Hoveton/Wroxham (Wroxham Barns) - Adventure Golf
• Hunstanton (Blackbeard's Adventure Golf) - Adventure Golf (Aztec Course)
• Hunstanton (Blackbeard's Adventure Golf) - Adventure Golf (Pirate Course)
• Hunstanton (Vegas Amusement Arcade) - Crazy Golf
• Hunstanton (Victorian Pavilion) - Crazy Golf
• Hunstanton (Victorian Pavilion) - Putting
• Mundesley (Adventure Island Golf) - Adventure Golf
• Norwich (Eaton Park) - Crazy Golf
• Sutton Staithe, near Stalham (Sutton Staithe Hotel) - Miniature Golf

Courses visited but not played:

• Clippesby Touring Park in Norfolk - Minigolf
• Cromer (Cromer Putting) - Putting Green
• Cromer (North Lodge Park) - Putting
• Cromer (The Meadow) - Pitch & Putt
• Fritton (Caldecott Hall Leisure Complex) - Crazy Golf had been removed 
• Fritton (Caldecott Hall Leisure Complex) - Putting Green
• Gorleston-on-Sea (Bure Park) - Pitch & Putt/Minigolf
• Great Yarmouth (Castaway Island Mini Golf) - Adventure Golf - formerly two Arnold Palmer Putting courses
• Norwich (Eaton Park) - Putting Green
• Norwich (Norwich Family Golf Centre) - Congo Rapids Adventure Golf
• Norwich (Norwich Family Golf Centre) - Putting Green
• Sheringham - Putting Green

Sadly the 9-hole and 18-hole Arnold Palmer Putting Courses are no longer in their original form in Great Yarmouth

Courses we've played but have since closed:

• Great Yarmouth (Arnold Palmer) - Minigolf 9-hole - replaced by Castaway Island Mini Golf
• Great Yarmouth (Arnold Palmer) - Minigolf 18-hole - replaced by Castaway Island Mini Golf
• Great Yarmouth (Jungle Golf at the Gardens) - Crazy Golf - turned into a Segway Grand Prix track in 2009

Courses still to visit in Norfolk:

• Abraham's Bosom, Wells-next-the-Sea
• Banham Zoo
• Bawburgh Golf Club, Norwich
• Caister Holiday Park, Caister-on-Sea
• Cherry Tree Holiday Park, Burgh Castle, Great Yarmouth
• Kings Head Pub, North Lopham
• Pirates Adventure Golf at Norfolk Premier Golf in Blofield
• Waveney Valley Holiday Village, Burgh Castle, Great Yarmouth

If you know of any other courses we've missed off the list above, or hear about new courses opening do get in touch or leave a comment on this post.

Minigolf course in Riga, Latvia

A look at the Play4Score miniature golf course in Riga, Latvia.

Many thanks to fellow minigolf enthusiast Simon Dewhurst for sending along some snaps of a miniature golf course he recently played in Riga, Latvia.

The Play4Score miniature golf course in Riga, Latvia

It's an 'eternit' type of minigolf course and Simon tells me it was laid out in a circle, the first time he's seen a set-up like it.

An interesting looking layout and setting

Simon tells me he finished in 2nd place in the mini-competition on the course

You can find the Play4Score minigolf course in the Northern District, Riga, LV-1014. Visit the Play4Score website for more info.

Links:
- Play4Score website
- Simon Dewhurst on Twitter

Crazy Golf interview on the Ginger and Nuts Show

Interview about our minigolf adventures on the Ginger and Nuts Show.

You can now listen to my interview about the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour from this week's Ginger and Nuts Show online.

Our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour is nearing the 750 course visit mark!

2017 Scottish Open Putting Championship in Prestwick

The Scottish Open Putting Championship is running at Putting Plus in Prestwick throughout the summer season.

In 2015 Putting Plus held the Open Putting Championship over a weekend, and it rained. In 2016 it was held over 10 days, and it rained. This year the Championship is bring held over the summer season, blame the putting curse when it rains.

In addition to the Champion Putter, category Champions include primary and secondary school age; over 60, over 70 and over 80; and the Grandparent and Grandchild Pairs.

This weekend, Saturday 29th and Sunday 30th July between 12 noon until 4pm, the focus is on the Grandparent and Grandchild Pairs category.

Champions in all categories will be announced at the beginning of September.

You can find out more about the 2017 Scottish Open Putting Championship on the Putting Plus Facebook page.

Back in action at the Woodstock Petanque Club

Playing petanque at Alexandra Park in Edgeley, Stockport.

It was great to be back in action at the Woodstock Petanque Club yesterday after a bit of a break in playing the game. The Sunday session began with some coaching from two English Petanque Association coaches who led the group in some training drills and gave some pointing and shooting demonstrations.

The players practice some pointing and lobbing on the Edgeley piste

It's always interesting receiving some top level coaching and advice and I'll certainly be putting some of the techniques into practice. I'm not sure going straight into a competitive match was the best thing to do after relearning the basics of holding and throwing a boules as my playing partner Carol and I lost 13-2 to Hilary and Dave!

My record at Woodstock Pétanque Club is now 6 wins and 5 defeats.

All-time
- Played 11, won 6, lost 5

2017
- Played 5, won 4, lost 1

2016
- Played 6, won 2, lost 4

Woodstock Pétanque Club meets on the piste at Alexandra Park in Edgeley, Stockport on the second and fourth Sundays of the month. Membership for the year is £10, with a £1 fee for each afternoon you play. A bargain price to spend playing a fun and skillful game in great company.

Visit the Petanque in Manchester Facebook Group and Ptonk in the Park Twitter account for more info. You can find out more about the game on the English Petanque Association website.

The Crazy World of Minigolf Tour keeps on rolling

Over the last three days we've visited eleven minigolf courses - including four new ones - on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. I've also competed in three Open tournaments at three different venues.

We 'found' an abandoned 15-hole Crazy Golf course at Higher Bebington Recreation Ground near Birkenhead

On Thursday we were at the Trafford Centre in Manchester to play at Paradise Island Adventure Golf. On Friday we visited St Annes to play the Crazy Golf and Par 3 MiniLinks courses - and filmed some news items for ITV and PA. Yesterday we visited Sutton Weaver Village near Runcorn, Paradise Island Adventure Golf at Cheshire Oaks, Higher Bebington Recreation Ground near Birkenhead, and Championship Adventure Golf in New Brighton. Before we hit the road we appeared on BBC Radio 4's Saturday Live programme.

The courses we visited in the past week have certainly been a real mixture of minigolf layouts! Full blog posts to follow...

Our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour now stands at 747 courses visited overall - 719 in the UK - and a total of 442 played since September 2006.

Paradise Island Adventure Golf at the Trafford Centre

Playing at the indoor Paradise Island Adventure Golf courses at the Trafford Centre.

Yesterday evening we headed along for a couple of rounds of minigolf at Paradise Island Adventure Golf at the Trafford Centre in Manchester.

I last played the course back in April 2009 while Emily had a round on the course in April of this year. The Tiki Hut Trail and Temple Ruins Adventure courses were originally the 85th and 86th played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Our rounds on the courses last night were part of the PIAG Open competition running from the 20th to 23rd July, with entry to the contest open to anyone playing a round on the layout. The PIAG Open is also running at the other Paradise Island Adventure Golf venues at Cheshire Oaks, Glasgow, Livingston, Sheffield and Derby.

The Open Championship scorecard

First up we played the Temple Ruins Adventure where I shot a 39 (including a dreaded 7 on the 5th hole) to Emily's 42. On the Tiki Hut Trail we both improved our scores. I settled into the course a bit more and recorded a 34, with Emily hitting a 38.

  

Check out the videos from our visit on our YouTube Channel and on the links below.



We're looking forward to visiting our next Paradise Island Adventure Golf course.

Link:
- Paradise Island Adventure Golf website

Related blog posts:
- Paradise Island Adventure Golf
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

Videos:
- Temple Ruins hole-in-one 
- Temple Ruins hole-in-one - hole 4
- Temple Ruins hole-in-one - hole 11
- Temple Ruins hole-in-one - hole 18
- Tiki Hut Trail hole-in-one - hole 5
- Tiki Hut Trail hole-in-one - hole 11
- Tiki Hut Trail hole-in-one - hole 13

Mobike in Cheadle Hulme

The new Mobike cycle hire scheme recently launched in Manchester and this morning I spotted one of the fancy bikes parked up/abandoned/awaiting collection in Cheadle Hulme.

I'm pretty sure this constitutes bad parking etiquette in the Mobike rulebook. Not that anyone really uses phone boxes anymore. But still

Check out the Mobike website for further details of the scheme and how you can hire one of the bikes.

The Mobikes look pretty cool. I wouldn't mind having a go on one, even if I'm more of a BMX man myself

There have been reports in the news and by police that bikes have been abandoned. However, unlike the London 'Boris Bikes' the Mobikes don't have docking stations, they are simply left in the open ready for collection by the next user.

Handy to know that I can collect one in the outer reaches of Greater Manchester here in the leafy Cheshire/Stockport borderlands.

Happy National Hot Dog Day

Today is National Hot Dog Day!

Happy National Hot Dog Day.

You can find out more about National Hot Dog Day and National Hot Dog Month on the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council website.

Related blog posts:
- Hot Dogs
- National Hot Dog Month

Links:
- #NationalHotDogDay
- #NationalHotDogMonth
- National Hot Dog and Sausage Council website

Hampions of Cheadle Hulme

Better a Hampion than a Ham & Egger.

Not sure if Manchester Rugby Club are the champs, or if the winners are the visitors

Seeing this sign reminded me of the Championship Winning Ham at a butchers in Needham Market, Suffolk. Surely a Ham Championship is a Hampionship...

Just hampion

Crazy Golf at Manor Park in Glossop

Playing a round of Crazy Golf at Glossop's Manor Park.

On the 28th June the Crazy Golf course in Glossop's Manor Park became the 743rd course visited on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. Unfortunately as it was a weekday the course wasn't open to play, so last Saturday we returned to give the course a go. Luckily the weather was a lot better than my visit the week before.

About to play a shot on hole 1

On the third hole

Playing hole 4

Check out the blog post from my original look at the course at "A visit to the Crazy Golf course in Glossop's Manor Park."

A view of the Crazy Golf course from the Miniature Railway's station platform

We also got to have a ride on the Miniature Railway which was brilliant fun.

The rules of the railway

The 6-minute train ride costs £2 per passenger and takes you round an interesting journey around the park and through the woods. You also get your hand stamped which means you can ride again for free!

Manor Park is a tremendous facility and we'd definitely visit again. Glossop as a whole is well worth seeing as there are some fantastic views of the Peak District from the town, as well as some interesting shops and pubs there too.

Links:
- Manor Park, Glossop
- Friends of Manor Park

Videos:
- Crazy Golf at Manor Park, Glossop - Hole 1
- Crazy Golf at Manor Park, Glossop - Hole 2
- Crazy Golf at Manor Park, Glossop - Hole 7
- Crazy Golf course at Manor Park, Glossop
- A walk round the Crazy Golf course at Manor Park in Glossop

Related blog posts:
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour
- Miniature Railways
- Crazy Golf