Sunday, September 18, 2016

Crazy Golf at Vickersway Park in Northwich, Cheshire

Visiting the 700th course on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.


On Saturday 17th September 2016 we reached another BIG milestone on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour as we played the 9-hole Crazy Golf course at Vickersway Park in Northwich, Cheshire - it was the 700th miniature golf course we've visited since our quest began back in September 2006.

Richard and Emily Gottfried at the Crazy Golf course in Vickersway Park in Northwich, Cheshire
At our 700th course

Crazy Golf course at Vickersway Park in Northwich, Cheshire
One of the nicest looking courses we've ever seen

Vickersway Park is a perfect setting for a sunny afternoon's minigolfing and is one of the nicest parks we've been to on our travels.

Vickersway Park in Northwich, Cheshire

The Crazy Golf course was the 411th we've managed to play and it was very pleasing to see the layout offering up obstacles we'd not seen before.

Crazy Golf course at Vickersway Park in Northwich, Cheshire
Emily teeing off on hole 1 of our 700th course visit

Crazy Golf course at Vickersway Park in Northwich, Cheshire
On hole 2

Crazy Golf course at Vickersway Park in Northwich, Cheshire
Hole 4 was the longest

Crazy Golf course at Vickersway Park in Northwich, Cheshire
The hilly 5th hole

Crazy Golf course at Vickersway Park in Northwich, Cheshire
The tough uphill 6th hole

Crazy Golf course at Vickersway Park in Northwich, Cheshire
Hole 8

Crazy Golf course at Vickersway Park in Northwich, Cheshire
The incredibly tough 9th hole

In our match-up on the course Emily picked up the win 30-31 - but if it were not for the incredibly tricky pipe obstacle on the last hole it would've been by a lot more.

When we arrived at the park we were surprised to find there's not one minigolf course there, but two! So, we also managed to play the 412th course on our tour!

Mini Golf Putting course at Vickersway Park in Northwich, Cheshire
Hole 1 of the Putting Green

The looping Putting Green was a nice course, with some difficult routes to the cups.

Mini Golf Putting course at Vickersway Park in Northwich, Cheshire
A view of the Putting course

There were also some chicken coops and hen houses and bird cages next to the course which was interesting to see and hear. I got a small measure of revenge for my earlier defeat on the Crazy Golf course by winning our round on the Putting course 23-26.

Mini Golf Putting course at Vickersway Park in Northwich, Cheshire
Emily putting

The park games are nicely priced and we received brilliant service from the lady in the kiosk. The park and its team are certainly an asset to the town.

Games at Vickersway Park in Northwich, Cheshire
The menu board

The first game we spotted at the park looked like a minigolf course, but was actually a pair of skittle alleys.

Skittles at Vickersway Park in Northwich, Cheshire
The Skittle alleys

We'd definitely return to Vickersway Park for some more minigolf, a game of skittles, a nice wander and a sit down in the pleasant surroundings. Visit the GoNorthwich website for more information.

Emily enjoying a nice sit down at the Putting course in Vickersway Park in Northwich
Emily enjoying a nice sit down at the Putting course

This year we're celebrating ten years of our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. It all began down in Sothsea, Hampshire on the 30th September 2006. We can't believe we've managed to visit 700 courses in that time. When we began there were around 600 courses in the UK! There are now 50 or so more for us to visit, but with new courses opening all the time who knows when, or if, we'll ever complete the set...

Vickersway Park Crazy Golf course scorecard
We added another brilliant minigolf scorecard to our collection

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

Videos:
- Vickersway Park Crazy Golf Hole 1
- Vickersway Park Crazy Golf Hole 2 - hole-in-one
- Vickersway Park Crazy Golf Hole 3
- Vickersway Park Crazy Golf Hole 4
- Vickersway Park Crazy Golf Hole 5
- Vickersway Park Crazy Golf Hole 6 - hole-in-one
- Vickersway Park Crazy Golf Hole 7 - hole-in-one
- Vickersway Park Crazy Golf Hole 8
- Vickersway Park Crazy Golf Hole 9
- Putting Green at Vickersway Park Hole 1 and chickens
- Putting Green at Vickersway Park Hole 5
- Crazy Golf and a Northern train at Vickersway Park in Northwich

Give the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour a Like on Facebook, watch our YouTube channel and follow us on Twitter @putting_gott and @Ems_Lems.

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Sunday, September 11, 2016

Crazy Golf at the Pier Head in Liverpool

Visiting the 699th course on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.


On Saturday 10th September we visited the 12-hole Crazy Golf course at the Pier Head in Liverpool.

Crazy Golf course in Liverpool

It became the 699th miniature golf course visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour since we began our travels on the 30th September 2006.

Richard and Emily Gottfried at the 699th minigolf course they've visited
At course number 699

It's a fun layout - made tricky by the use of regular bouncy golf balls - and had some interesting obstacles.

Crazy Golf course in Liverpool

Crazy Golf course in Liverpool
An interesting place to park a London bus

Crazy Golf course in Liverpool

Crazy Golf course in Liverpool

Crazy Golf course in Liverpool


It was similar in style to the courses we've played in Brockhole and Torquay. And a bit like the course in Ayr as decking had been used for some of the holes.

Crazy Golf course in Liverpool

The course became the 410th played overall and at £3 per player it was a good price for some fun minigolf.

Crazy Golf course in Liverpool

Now we roll on to the 700th course. Who knows where it'll be!

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

Video:
- Playing hole 7

Give the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour a Like on Facebook, watch our YouTube channel and follow us on Twitter @putting_gott and @Ems_Lems.

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Minigolf at Liverpool Golf Centre

Playing two miniature golf courses at the Liverpool Golf Centre.


On Saturday 10th September we headed to Liverpool and the Liverpool Golf Centre & Driving Range where we added two more courses to our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Minigolf course at Liverpool Golf Centre and Driving Range

The 9-hole short game Putting course and 9-hole Mini Golf layout were great fun and a good challenge.

Minigolf course at Liverpool Golf Centre and Driving Range

The Putting Green was the first course we played on the visit and became the 697th and 407th course played since our travels began in September 2006.

Minigolf course at Liverpool Golf Centre and Driving Range

Minigolf course at Liverpool Golf Centre and Driving Range

Minigolf course at Liverpool Golf Centre and Driving Range

I enjoyed hitting two holes-in-one during our round. Always pleasing on a Putting course.

Minigolf course at Liverpool Golf Centre and Driving Range

The Mini Golf course is a real challenge of Putting skill as the holes were borderless.

Minigolf course at Liverpool Golf Centre and Driving Range

Minigolf course at Liverpool Golf Centre and Driving Range

Mini Golf course at Liverpool Golf Centre

Mini Golf course at Liverpool Golf Centre

Mini Golf course at Liverpool Golf Centre

Mini Golf course at Liverpool Golf Centre

Mini Golf course at Liverpool Golf Centre

Mini Golf course at Liverpool Golf Centre

Mini Golf course at Liverpool Golf Centre

Mini Golf course at Liverpool Golf Centre

We received a nice welcome from the golf pro on the till when we arrived and enjoyed a couple of rounds on the two courses.

The Liverpool Golf Centre has a great weather vane
The Liverpool Golf Centre has a great weather vane

Visit the Liverpool Golf Centre & Driving Range website for more information.

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

Videos:
- Mini Golf at Liverpool Golf Centre - hole 1
- Mini Golf at Liverpool Golf Centre - hole 4
- Mini Golf at Liverpool Golf Centre - hole 8
- Mini Golf at Liverpool Golf Centre - hole 9
- Putting Green Mini Golf at Liverpool Golf Centre - hole-in-one

Give the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour a Like on Facebook, watch our YouTube channel and follow us on Twitter @putting_gott and @Ems_Lems.

You can also now sign-up to receive our miniature golf newsletter.

The Park Bench Appreciation Society

It's good to have a nice sit down.

We recently met up with Leland Carlson from the Dull Men's Club - Mission Statement: “It’s OK to be dull” - and had a nice day out in Stockport. Our first port of call was the Town Hall to visit a giant postcard fair, surprisingly the first Leland had visited.

It's quite possible he's now been hooked on collecting postcards as Emily managed to find a card depicting one of his areas of interest - park benches. In fact he ended up buying more than one.

Richard and Emily Gottfried having a nice sit down on a bench in Stockport. Photo by Leland Carlson
Having a nice sit down on a bench in Stockport. Photo by Leland Carlson

On our travels Emily and I have also had a sit on the Longest Bench in the world. It's in Littlehampton.

Earlier this year we also had the opportunity to see the new bench at the excellent Splash Point Mini Golf course in Worthing.

New bench at Splash Point Mini Golf course in Worthing
The new addition to Splash Point Mini Golf

Visit the Dull Men's Club website to find out more.

Saturday, September 10, 2016

Cyberdine Electronic Darts in Luton

Playing darts on an interesting board in Luton.


We recently returned to our old Luton stomping ground and while in town we spotted a brilliant darts game in the downstairs bar of The Gospoda Polish restaurant on Chapel Street.

Cyberdine Electronic dart board in Luton
A futuristic dart board if ever I saw one

As big fans of darts, strange games and odd machines - we had to take a closer look. We were amazed to see it was made by Cyberdine!

This particular product from the Cyberdine range is the CYD03-01.

Cyberdine Electronic dart board in Luton
In action on the soft tip darts game

We gave it a play and luckily it didn't become self-aware.

Cyberdine Electronic dart board in Luton
With the CYD03-01

Fellow darts and sci-fi movie aficionado Marc 'The Roller' Bazeley commented that it "Looks like the Raffletech 3000's long-lost cousin."

Raffletech 3010 raffle machine
The RaffleTron!

Related blog posts:
- Darts
- Luton
- Novelty Automation arcade in London
- Cullercoats Lifeboat Charity Evening and the 'Raffletech 3010'

Links:
- The Gospoda
- Cyberdine Darts

Give the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour a Like on Facebook, watch our YouTube channel and follow us on Twitter @putting_gott and @Ems_Lems.

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Thursday, September 08, 2016

British Minigolf Open at Hastings Adventure Golf

British Minigolf Open championships heading to Hastings.


The team at Hastings Adventure Golf have got in touch to let us know about the British Minigolf Open taking place on the 17th and 18th September. Over 50 British and international crazy golf competitors will tee off in a bid to win the title in the two-day, nine round event.

Chris Richards of Hastings Adventure Golf, said: “We’re delighted to be hosting the tournament again this year. It’s a challenging course but this event attracts the very best players in UK crazy golf and is always a spectacle to watch.”

Playing the Pirate Adventure Golf course in Hastings
Tackling the challenge of the Pirate Golf course

The tournament takes place on the 18-hole Pirate Course, where players must contend with cannon fire, explosions, water features, tunnels, ramps and banked curves.

The 18-hole Pirate Adventure Golf course in Hastings was the 219th course we played on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

With three 18-hole miniature golf courses, Hastings Adventure Golf also hosts the World Crazy Golf Championships. Situated on the seafront in Hastings Old Town, the British Open Championships starts at 9am on Saturday 17th September.

Playing the Pirate Adventure Golf course in Hastings
Emily playing the Pirate Golf course in Hastings

Earlier this year Hastings Adventure Golf completed a massive refurbishment at Pelham Place in Hastings that transformed an area of the promenade that had been looking a bit weary. The £450,000 construction project involved the redevelopment of the land behind Hastings Adventure Golf from Pelham Place to the promenade. This is now pedestrianised and includes a plaza-style eating area with modern street furniture and a new fish and chip restaurant.

Over the years Emily and I have competed in a number of British Opens and other national tour events in Hastings and the miniature golf courses there are great fun.

For more information check out the Hastings Adventure Golf website.

Give the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour a Like on Facebook, watch our YouTube channel and follow us on Twitter @putting_gott and @Ems_Lems.

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