Lost shops - Sainsbury's on Warren Street in Stockport town centre

A look at Sainsbury's on Warren Street in Stockport town centre.

Now a lost shop.

It closed on the 31st January this year.

Boom: Battle Bar heading to Lakeside

The Lakeside Shopping Centre in West Thurrock, Essex will be home to a new Boom: Battle Bar.

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

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

Visit the Boom: Battle Bar Lakeside Facebook Page for more information.

Boom: Battle Bars are a relatively new entrant to the world of competitive socialising and retailtainment. 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.

Read more in my blog post about the retailtainment and minigolf boom.

New minigolf course in Reading

A new minigolf course is being created as part of an activity centre at Prospect Park in Reading, Berkshire.

The centre will also include a climbing wall and rope course.

It'll be another new course to play on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour in the future.

Miniature Golf in Reading

A new indoor adventure golf course is also planned to open at The Oracle shopping centre in Reading. The new venue will replace the House of Fraser department store. As well as indoor minigolf the location will also be home to a food hall and tenpin bowling.

There are also plans for a Mini Golf & Bowling Lounge at the Broad Street Mall in the town.

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A Happy Shopper

I've added another nice retro badge to my collection.

It'll look good next to my Happy Eater badges.

Check out my other Happy Shopper and badge blog posts.

New minigolf course opening in Weston-super-Mare

A new indoor minigolf course is opening in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset.

Weston-super-Mare will be home to a new indoor minigolf course as the former Seaquarium is converted into a family-themed restaurant and minigolf venue.

It'll be another new course for us to play when we revisit the seaside resort on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Related blog posts:

• Weston-super-Mare

Only Cars and Commercials

We spotted this amazing van on our daily walk in Cheadle on Saturday!

I'd literally just said to Emily that I hadn't seen anything fun to photograph recently as we've been locked down in the borough.

Only Fools and Horses is a pop culture icon that has been ripe for bootlegging and parodies over the years.

It's crazy how many Reliant Regal Supervans we've seen on our minigolf travels.

Elsewhere in Stockport you can see a hearse from a business called Shed's Household Independent Traders.

Shawfield Line Marking Specialists Ltd. is another business that operates in Stockport and some less exotic locations like London, Paris and New York.

If you're in Blackpool you can visit Lester's Independent Trading Co.

Putt18 World Pro League Results - Season Two, Week Two

The results are in for the second week of the 2021 Putt18 World Pro League.

After shooting rounds of 74, 85, 85 and 80 for a 72-hole total of 324 I am currently in 13th place on 24 points and in 15th place in the strokeplay standings.

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.

Matt Ansley, NZL has maintained his lead, with Dave Gomm, GBR in second and Josh Mars, AUS in third place.

You can watch my rounds from week two in the video below.

  

 Visit the Putt18 website for more information.

Minigolf American Football in Sweden

A look at the minigolf course at O'Leary's bar and entertainment centre at the Mall of Scandinavia in Solna.

We visited our 801st minigolf course and 32nd overseas at O'Leary's bar and entertainment centre at the Mall of Scandinavia in Solna, Stockholm, Sweden in February 2018.

Hole 12 was Gridiron themed

The Sports World Minigolf course was a 14-hole indoor layout with sports themed holes.

 

Check out the blog post from our visit to Sports World Mini Golf at O'Leary's in the Mall of Scandinavia.

Visit the O'Leary's website for more information.

New Adventure Golf course in Skelmersdale

There are retailtainment plans for the Concourse Shopping Centre in Skelmersdale, Lancashire.

As well as an indoor Adventure Golf course, the WonderWorld attraction at the Concourse Shopping Centre will include a wide-range of activities for adults and children including an inflatable assault course, darts, tenpin bowling, amusements, arcade games and more.

Link:

• Concourse Shopping Centre

Retailtainment

More and more shopping centres, retail parks and high streets are adding retail entertainment offerings to increase footfall, attract and retain customers. There are a lot of new minigolf courses, competitive socialising venues and family entertainment centres in development and under construction at the moment, all gearing up to be ready for the post-covid world.

Porth Island Krazy Golf in Newquay

A look at the Porth Island Krazy Golf course in Newquay, Cornwall.

We played the Porth Island Krazy Golf course in Newquay on our road-trip around the South West coast of England back in June 2015.

The course was similar to a Beton Concrete type of miniature golf course and interesting, if a little too difficult, to play.

The course was the 47th visited on our two-week holiday, the 377th played overall and the 646th visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Visit the Newquay Football Golf website for more information on the Porth Island Krazy Golf course.

New Adventure Golf course in Henley

Henley-on-Thames in Oxfordshire could become home to a new Adventure Golf course.

There are plans to create a new 9 or 18-hole Adventure Golf course on the site of the Putting Green at Mill Meadows in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire.

It'll be another new course to play in my home county!

It's Groundhog Day

Happy Groundhog Day.

Do you want to see six more weeks of Winter or an early Spring?

Lost shops - Debenhams in Stockport town centre

A look at Debenhams in Stockport town centre. Now a lost shop.

Putt18 World Pro League - Season Two, Week Two

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

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

Putt18 World Pro League

A total of 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.

Week One Results

After shooting rounds of 71, 74, 80 and 77 for a 72-hole total of 302 I am currently in tied 12th place on 18 points and in tied 10th place in the strokeplay standings. Tom Loftus of the USA shot a 302 for 18 points too.

About Putt18

The Putt18 roll out putting mat allows players to compete on an 18-hole course from their own home - and against other people around the world. Players tee-off from one of six tee boxes and aim at each of the three holes in turn, starting with a par-4, followed by a par-5 and ending on a par-3. They then move to the next tee position and take aim at the holes in turn again.

Visit the Putt18 website for more information.

Boom: Battle Bar opening in Coventry

Coventry will be home to a new Boom: Battle Bar.

Boom: Battle Bar at the Skydome in Coventry will include a Crazier Golf minigolf layout as well as a number of other competitive socialising activities.

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

Related blog posts:

• Boom: Battle Bar
• Coventry

Putt18 World Pro League Results - Season Two, Week One

The results are in for the first week of the 2021 Putt18 World Pro League.

After shooting rounds of 71, 74, 80 and 77 for a 72-hole total of 302 I am currently in tied 12th place on 18 points and in tied 10th place in the strokeplay standings. Tom Loftus of the USA shot a 302 for 18 points too.

A total of 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.

Matt Ansley, NZL leads the way, with Dave Gomm, GBR in second and Josh Mars, AUS in third place.

Check out the Putt18 website for more information.

Puttery mini golf

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

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.

New Crazy Golf course planned for Redcar

The Coatham area of Redcar in Teesside will be home to a new 18-hole Crazy Golf course on the site of the former Coatham Bowl.

We've been to Redcar a couple of times on our travels around Teesside and it'll be good to head back to play the new course in the future.

Results of the Putt18 Battle of the Brits tournament

Play has concluded in the 2021 Battle of the Brits Putt18 competition.

The first-ever Putt18 Battle of the Brits tournament has been completed - and I won it!

I scored a total of 281 over 72-holes - a new personal best four round total. My round of 67 was also a personal best. My scores were good enough for first place in Nett scores and third place in Gross un-handicapped scoring.

Eight players competed in the event. With David Gomm runner-up and Steve Lovell in third place.

The Putt18 World Pro League 2021

The 2021 Putt18 World Pro League has teed-off with 22 players from the UK, Australia, New Zealand and the USA competing in rounds using the Putt18 Golf Putting Game Mat between now and April.

Visit the Putt18 website for more information.

Art Deco in Doncaster

We're big fans of Art Deco style, design and architecture and we've been remembering our trip to Doncaster last year and our stay at the superb Earl of Doncaster Hotel in Bennetthorpe.

Roaring twenties in the 2020s.

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We couldn't have asked for a better spot - Art Deco magnificence and the hotel was right next door to a park with a Crazy Golf course in it.

The Crazy Golf course at Elmfield Park

Danum House was another nice Art Deco building in the town centre.

We're looking forward to getting back out on our travels, exploring new places and revisiting our favourite spots when it's safe to do so in the future.