Monday, August 23, 2010

Full Minigolf Report - 2010 Cystadleuaeth Minigolff Cymraeg (Welsh Minigolf Tournament)

Minigolf Report
2010 Cystadleuaeth Minigolff Cymraeg (Welsh Minigolf Tournament)




Cwmbran's Leo Kukielka wins the Cystadleuaeth Minigolff Cymraeg

The 2010 Cystadleuaeth Minigolff Cymraeg (Welsh Minigolf Tournament) was played out over five rounds and 48-holes, on two minigolf courses, in two countries on Saturday 21st August 2010.

Cwmbran's Leo Kukielka won the title in the eight player field with a total score of 112(+16), three shots clear of his brother Seve Kukielka on 115(+19) and four clear of bronze medallist Paul Johnson on 116(+21). Jas Kukielka, a pre-tournament favourite as the reigning and defending 2009 Cystadleuaeth Minigolff Cymraeg (Welsh Minigolf Tournament) Champion finished in a disappointing 7th place with a score of 125(+29).

On Friday 20th August a draw was held to decide the groups and order of play for the first round, with the groups reorganised based on scores after each round.

Details of the draw:
Group 1

- Richard Gottfried
- Owen Johnson
- Leo Kukielka

Group 2
- Peter Jones*
- Cindy Kukielka
- Emily Gottfried
*Did not play

Group 3
- Jas Kukielka
- Paul Johnson
- Seve Kukielka


Rounds one to three were played at the 9-hole Minigolf course at Tredegar Park in Newport, Wales, with rounds four and five played in England at the 12-hole Roman-themed Wye Valley Miniatvre/Miniature Golf course in Symonds Yat West.

Round one scores & rank - Tredegar Park
- Richard Gottfried - 21 - 6
- Owen Johnson - 28 - 8
- Leo Kukielka - 20 - 5
- Cindy Kukielka - 19 - 3
- Emily Gottfried - 19 - 3
- Jas Kukielka - 23 - 7
- Paul Johnson - 18* - 1
- Seve Kukielka - 18* - 1
* Course Record

Round two scores & running totals & rank - Tredegar Park
- Richard Gottfried - 20 - 41 - 4
- Owen Johnson - 22 - 50 - 8
- Leo Kukielka - 21 - 41 - 4
- Cindy Kukielka - 19 - 38 - 3
- Emily Gottfried - 22 - 41 - 4
- Jas Kukielka - 18* - 41 - 4
- Paul Johnson - 18* - 36 - 1
- Seve Kukielka - 19 - 37 - 2
* Course Record

Round three scores & running totals & rank - Tredegar Park
- Richard Gottfried - 20 - 61 - 5
- Owen Johnson - 20 - 70 - 8
- Leo Kukielka - 16* - 57 - 4
- Cindy Kukielka - 17 - 55 - 2
- Emily Gottfried - 22 - 63 - 7
- Jas Kukielka - 20 - 61 - 5
- Paul Johnson - 19 - 55 - 2
- Seve Kukielka - 17 - 54 - 1
* Course Record

Round four scores & running totals & rank - Symonds Yat West
- Richard Gottfried - 30 - 91 - 5
- Owen Johnson - 33 - 103 - 8
- Leo Kukielka - 26* - 83 - 1
- Cindy Kukielka - 32 - 87 - 3
- Emily Gottfried - 32 - 95 - 6
- Jas Kukielka - 35 - 96 - 7
- Paul Johnson - 32 - 87 - 3
- Seve Kukielka - 31 - 85 - 2
* Course Record

Round five (final round) scores & running totals & rank - Symonds Yat West
- Richard Gottfried - 28 - 119 - 5
- Owen Johnson - 34 - 137 - 8
- Leo Kukielka - 29 - 112 - 1
- Cindy Kukielka - 30 - 117 - 4
- Emily Gottfried - 27 - 122 - 6
- Jas Kukielka - 29 - 125 - 7
- Paul Johnson - 29 - 116 - 3
- Seve Kukielka - 30 - 115 - 2

Final Rankings of the 2010 Cystadleuaeth Minigolff Cymraeg (Welsh Minigolf Tournament)
1st - Leo Kukielka (WAL)
2nd - Seve Kukielka (WAL)
3rd - Paul Johnson (ENG)
--------------------------------
4th - Cindy Kukielka (WAL)
5th - Richard Gottfried (ENG)
6th - Emily Gottfried (ENG)
7th - Jas Kukielka (WAL)
8th - Owen Johnson (ENG)

New Cystadleuaeth Minigolff Cymraeg champion Leo Kukielka said "Rydw i'n hoffi iawn o enill y Cystadleuaeth Cymraeg a rwyn eisiau enill mwy o cystadleuaeth ardraws Prydain." ("I am very pleased to have won the Welsh Tournament and, hopefully, I will go on to win some more tournaments in Britain.")

Outgoing Cystadleuaeth Minigolff Cymraeg champion Jas Kukielka said "Having to look out for the park ranger whilst playing our 'free' rounds in Tredegar Park put me on edge for the first couple of rounds and I never recovered, but I couldn't have handed the trophy over to a better player!"

Welsh Ladies Number One Cindy Kukielka narrowly missed out on the bronze medal but did win the 2010 Aces Champions prize with a total of 8 holes-in-one, the next nearest to Cindy was Leo on 4 Aces across the tournament. Birmingham's Owen 'Jackpot' Johnson picked up the competition MVP prize having shown great improvement in his scores over the rounds (especially rounds 1-3).

Photos from the tournament:
Tredegar Park, Newport, Wales





Symonds Yat West, England









New Champion Leo Kukielka

The top three - from l-r - Seve Kukielka, Leo Kukielka, Paul Johnson
The prize-less three - from l-r - Emily Gottfried, Jas Kukielka, Richard Gottfried

As a side note the cumulative scores for the Welsh & English players as 'teams' are below:
Wales - 112 + 117 + 125 + 115 = 469
England - 119 + 137 + 122 + 116 = 498

Results of the 2009 Cystadleuaeth Minigolff Cymraeg (Welsh Minigolf Tournament) held in Swansea (Abertawe).

Penarth Golff Mini (it's a Golf Byr!) - Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

While in Wales last weekend we decided to stop off at the seaside resort of Penarth, as it was one of the seasides we did not visit on our 2009 Tour of Wales.

We were just planning to visit the town to see what was there and unexpectedly found that there was a Mini Golf (Golff Mini) course there! It's at Cioni's Bistro on the Cliff Top.

Mini Golf / Golff Mini in Penarth, Wales
Miniature Golf in Penarth, Wales
Miniature Golf in Penarth, Wales
Mini Golf / Golff Mini in Penarth, Wales
The Mini Golf (Golff Mini) course was actually a Pitch and Putt (Golf Byr) as opposed to a Crazy Golf (Golf Gwyllt) type of Minigolf (Minigolff).

Brown Tourist Sign in Penarth - include direction to a Golf ByrUnfortunately we didn't have time to have a game, the course did look good though.

Related blog posts:
Crazy World of Minigolf Tour list of courses visited and played
Minigolf etc. - English to Welsh translations
Wales

Pontypool/Pont-y-pŵl - Pontypool Park, Wales - Derelict & Demolished Miniature Golf Course

A visit to Pontypool Park in search of a Minigolf course.

Parc Pont-y-pŵl / Pontypool Park in Wales
After visiting the TGS Adventure Golf course in Hereford we headed back to Wales and Pontypool/Pont-y-pŵl to visit Pontypool Park/Parc Pont-y-pŵl, as we'd heard that there was a Crazy Golf sight to behold at the Park!

The remnants of a Minigolf course in Pontypool Park / Parc Pont-y-pŵl
The remnants of a Minigolf course in Pontypool Park / Parc Pont-y-pŵl
Signs of where the Minigolf course once sat in Pontypool Park




Signs of where the Minigolf course once sat in Pontypool Park
Signs of where the Minigolf course once sat in Pontypool Park
Signs of where the Minigolf course once sat in Pontypool Park
The remnants of a Minigolf course in Pontypool Park / Parc Pont-y-pŵl
The remnants of a Minigolf course in Pontypool Park / Parc Pont-y-pŵl
Where the hut once stood at the derelict ghost Minigolf course at Pontypool Park / Parc Pont-y-pŵl
A terrible sight to see. Although hopefully a new minigolf course will take the place of the demolished one in the future. Pontypool Park was quite big and looked nice, however it was not very easy to find due to a lack of signage!?

Related blog post:
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

Adventure Golf in Hereford

Playing the 194th course on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Adventure Golf in Hereford
After playing the Miniature/Miniatvre Golf course at Symonds Yat West we decided to remain in England a little while longer before heading back over the border for the rest of our weekend in Wales.

Our next stop on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour was at the 12-hole Adventure Golf course at TGS in Hereford, Herefordshire.

The course was the 194th played on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour and was built by City Golf, the builders of both the Blackpool Pleasure Beach and Porthcawl (Trecco Park) courses.
Mini Golf in Hereford Adventure Golf in Hereford Minigolf in Hereford TGS Adventure Golf in Hereford The TGS course contains a variety of holes and obstacles, some of the holes are very long, while others are incredibly short!

Related blog post:
Crazy World of Minigolf Tour list of courses visited and played

Playing the Wye Valley Miniatvre Golf course in Symonds Yat West

A Crazy World of Minigolf Tour visit to the Wye Valley Miniature Golf course in Symonds Yat West.

Playing the Wye Valley Miniature Golf course in Symonds Yat West
Following our visit to the Tredegar Park Minigolf course in Newport, Wales on Saturday 21st August 2010 we headed back over the border for a couple of rounds at the 12-hole Roman-themed Miniatvre Golf course at Wye Valley Miniatvre Golf in Symonds Yat West.

The course was the 193rd played on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour, and also home to the final two rounds of the 2010 Cystadleuaeth Minigolff Cymraeg (Welsh Minigolf Tournament).







The course is great fun to play, with some excellent obstacles and well designed holes. I'd definitely return to play there again.

Wye Valley Miniature Golf course in Symonds Yat West
Wye Valley Miniature Golf course in Symonds Yat West
Wye Valley Miniature Golf course in Symonds Yat West
Wye Valley Miniature Golf course in Symonds Yat West
Wye Valley Miniature Golf course in Symonds Yat West
Wye Valley Miniature Golf course in Symonds Yat West
Wye Valley Miniature Golf course in Symonds Yat West
While at the course we talked with Lindsay Heyes, co-owner of the Wye Valley Miniature Golf course who kindly gave us some background history to his very well thought out course.

He told us that the Wye Valley Miniature Golf was opened on 11th September 2007, and he designed the course, while his brother Edward Heyes led the construction team. In the research stage they looked at 80 parameters which determine playability, from drainage and gradient to type of ball and gap-width between obstacles.

Interestingly the whole course acts as a water-collector for, and admits light to, the Wye Valley Butterfly Zoo as part of their environmental sustainability effort. Nearly all components were sourced from local suppliers - e.g. the colonnade was cast just a mile away from the course, where they had the columns distressed to age them two thousand years!

The concept was that the course would wind its way through a fictional excavation, complete with a grave, of a Romano-British villa engaged in the fellmongery business.

The centre also has an Amazing Maze (and Maze Museum), Butterfly Farm, Tea Room and Garden Centre, and makes a great location for a day out.

The Maze



Richard Gottfried, Leo Kukielka & Owen Johnson try their hand at juggling(!?) at the Amazing Maze after the minigolf.

Wye Valley Miniature Golf course in Symonds Yat West
Links:
- Wye Valley Miniature Golf website
- Wye Valley Miniature Golf on Twitter

Related blog post:
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour

Tredegar Park Minigolf, Newport - Crazy World of Minigolf Tour Course Played #192

Tredegar Park Minigolf, Newport
On Saturday 21st August 2010 we played minigolf course number 192 on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour, when we visited the 9-hole course at Tredegar Park Minigolf, Newport, Wales to play the first three rounds of the 2010 Cystadleuaeth Minigolff Cymraeg (Welsh Minigolf Tournament).







The course wasn't too bad to play, but unfortunately the park's facilities and course hut/kiosk weren't even open, despite our visit being on a Saturday during the summer!?

Tredegar Park Minigolf, Newport
Tredegar Park Minigolf, Newport
Tredegar Park Minigolf, Newport
Tredegar Park Minigolf, Newport
Tredegar Park Minigolf, Newport
Tredegar Park Minigolf, Newport

Related blog posts:
Crazy World of Minigolf Tour list of courses visited and played
Wales
Minigolf etc. - English to Welsh translations

45 minutes on Barry Island


Having previously spent '10 minutes in Canvey Island' in 2008 we found ourselves visiting Barry Island in Wales for a quick 45 minutes of amusements and seaside attractions*.

Having previously played the Pirate Adventure Golf course on our Tour of Wales in August 2009 we instead visited 'The Buttons' and also found a crazy shooting gallery.




Links to other shooting shack adventures on our seaside tour here and here.

* We were only able to spend 45 minutes there as the Parking machine charged £1 for an hour, or £4 for anything over an hour!?

Sunday, August 22, 2010

Gluten Free Fish & Chips at the Fairwater Fish & Chip Bar, Fairwater (Coed Eva), Cwmbran, Wales

On Saturday 21st August 2010 we visited the Fairwater Fish & Chip Bar in Fairwater (Coed Eva), Cwmbran, Wales as we'd heard they sold Gluten Free Fish & Chips.

And they did!

Gluten free fish and chips at the Fairwater Fish & Chip Bar in Cwmbran
They also sell a wide-range of Gluten Free Fish & Chip shop classics that are safe for Coeliacs to eat - including Battered Sausages, an absolute rarity!

Highly recommended, very knowledgeable staff and very tasty Gluten Free food!

Contact details for the Fairwater Fish & Chip Bar:
15 Fairwater Square
Fairwater, Cwmbran, Gwent NP44 4TA
01633 485 262