Tuesday, September 12, 2017

The Twilight Zone Mini Golf at Bally's Las Vegas

New indoor minigolf course opening at Bally's Las Vegas in late 2017.

There's a brand new indoor minigolf course opening at Bally's Las Vegas this year. Created by the team at Monster Mini Golf the course will be Twilight Zone themed!

The Twilight Zone by Monster Mini Golf course will open at Bally's Las Vegas in late 2017

The Twilight Zone mini golf course sounds brilliant and I hope to play it in the future. The Twilight Zone is one of my favourite programmes so I can't wait to see the theming and obstacles at the course.

We love visiting Las Vegas and have played most of the courses out there. On Emily's last visit to the city she played the Kiss by Monster Mini Golf course. On my last visit I won the Putt Park Annual Mini Golf tournament!

Check out The Twilight Zone by Monster Mini Golf website and Twitter for more information.

Links:
- Monster Mini Golf - The Twilight Zone
- Monster Mini Golf
- Bally's Las Vegas

Related blog posts:
- Indoor Minigolf
- Las Vegas

Enchanted Village Adventure Golf at Sparrows Den

New Adventure Golf course opening at Sparrows Den Pitch & Putt in West Wickham.

A new Adventure Golf course is opening at the Sparrows Den Pitch & Putt in West Wickham, Bromley this weekend!

Check out the photos of the course from the team at ROCKARTuk. It looks fantastic.

Related blog posts:
- Crazy Golf in London
- Adventure Golf

Links:
- ROCKARTuk
- Enchanted Village Adventure Golf

Happy National Video Game Day!

Happy National Video Game Day 2017.

Pac-Man video game graffiti in Tamworth
We were recently in Tamworth - to play the new Castle Adventure Golf course at Namco Funscape - and noticed this giant piece of video game graffiti on a legal graffiti wall on an underpass!

Monday, September 11, 2017

What a weekend of minigolf!

We've been down at The Belfry playing in the American Golf Adventure Golf Pairs National Championship Final - as well as visiting a stack of new minigolf courses on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour. More blog posts to follow soon...

The final of the American Golf Adventure Golf Pairs Championship will be broadcast on Sky Sports
The final of the American Golf Adventure Golf Pairs Championship will be broadcast on Sky Sports

Crazy Golf course in Bury St Edmunds

Pop-up Crazy Golf course spotted in Bury St Edmunds.

My cousin's husband Adam Trigg sent over this photo of a Crazy Golf course layout he spotted set-up on the grass in the park opposite the Angel Hotel in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk at the weekend.

Crazy Golf course in Bury St Edmunds
A Mini Golf course. Set-up on grass. Crazy

Years ago I played a very early Putterfingers Crazy Golf course in the Abbey Gardens in Bury St Edmunds.

Earlier this year my cousins played the Crazy Golf course at Seawick Holiday Park in St Osyth, near Clacton-on-Sea, Essex.

Related blog posts:
- Bury St Edmunds
- Crazy Golf
- Guest Blog
Suffolk

The road to nowhere

Our travels around the UK have certainly taken us to some interesting places and while driving through the Midlands yesterday afternoon we found the road to nowhere!

This doorway in the Aspall Secret Garden at the Bowling Green pub isn't all it seems!
This doorway in the Aspall Secret Garden at the Bowling Green pub isn't all it seems!

We stopped off at the Bowling Green while en route to Beacon Park where we were heading to play Crazy Golf. The Bowling Green pub is well worth a visit. It's an interesting spot for a drink as the pub sits on the middle of a roundabout!

The Bowling Green pub in Lichfield has a very nice 3D sign
The Bowling Green pub has a very nice 3D sign

We've seen a few Crazy Golf courses in pub beer gardens in our time. Not nearly enough though.

Related blog posts:
- Pub
- Pubs
- Roundabout

Link:
- The Bowling Green Lichfield

Thursday, September 07, 2017

Junkyard Golf Club at First Street in Manchester

Playing the three new Crazy Golf courses at Junkyard Golf Club at First Street in Manchester.


Junkyard Golf Club at First Street in Manchester

Last night Emily and I attended the launch party to welcome Junkyard Golf Club to its new home at First Street in Manchester.

Junkyard Golf Club at First Street in Manchester
I do like blacklit indoor minigolf courses and three of the 27 holes at Junkyard Golf are UV

Junkyard Golf Club first popped up at the Great Northern Warehouse before moving to Piccadilly and has now settled into its permanent venue at First Street.

Junkyard Golf Club at First Street in Manchester
A steep ramp and crazy loop

In our rounds on the three Crazy Golf courses at the Junkyard Golf Club Emily won on the Gary course, I won on the Bozo layout and Emily took the win on the Pablo course.

Junkyard Golf Club at First Street in Manchester
Putting into a Clown's mouth

The courses were the 765th, 766th and 767th courses visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Junkyard Golf Club at Manchester Piccadilly
The former site of Junkyard Golf Club at Piccadilly

Last month I visited the Junkyard Golf Club on Brick Lane in London.

A Junkyard Golf Club venue is also opening at the new Westgate Centre in Oxford.

Link:
- Junkyard Golf Club at First Street

Related blog posts:
- Junkyard Golf
- Junkyard Golf Club in Manchester
- Junkyard Golf Club in London
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour
Indoor Minigolf, Crazy Golf and Adventure Golf courses

Kingtucky Fried Chicken in Manchester

It's long since closed down - or was forcibly shut down!

Kingtucky Fried Chicken in Manchester
A type of KFC

Pacer Face-Off at Manchester Piccadilly

What a sight for fans of Pacer Railbuses!

Pacer Railbus trains at Manchester Piccadilly
What a sight!

Tuesday, September 05, 2017

Adventure Golf at Pontins Pakefield

A look at the minigolf course at Pontins Pakefield in Suffolk.

Our friends Sophia and Karl Moles were on a family holiday at Pontins Pakefield and sent us some photos of the Sailing Through The Ages minigolf course at the holiday park. It looks great fun.

Sailing Through The Ages minigolf course at Pontins Pakefield Holiday Park. Photo by Sophia and Karl Moles, September 2017
There's even a 'Titanic' on the course!

Sailing Through The Ages minigolf course at Pontins Pakefield Holiday Park. Photo by Sophia and Karl Moles, September 2017
Always nice to see BIG obstacles on minigolf courses

Sailing Through The Ages minigolf course at Pontins Pakefield Holiday Park. Photo by Sophia and Karl Moles, September 2017
There are plenty of nautical obstacles on the course

Sailing Through The Ages minigolf course at Pontins Pakefield Holiday Park. Photo by Sophia and Karl Moles, September 2017
Iceberg dead ahead!

Sailing Through The Ages minigolf course at Pontins Pakefield Holiday Park. Photo by Sophia and Karl Moles, September 2017
It looks like a good minigolf layout

Check out the other guest blog posts from Sophia and Karl about minigolf courses at Allhallows Leisure Holiday Park in Rochester, Haven's Caister-on-Sea Holiday Park and the Minigolf Sport Club Sanremo in Arma, Italy.

Emily and I have played two minigolf courses at Pontins holiday parks - at Prestatyn Sands and Camber Sands.

Related blog posts:
- Pontins

Link:
- Pontins Pakefield

North Korea Exhibition in Wigan

Visiting the North Korea, An Exploration exhibition at The Old Courts in Wigan.

North Korea, An Exploration exhibition at The Old Courts in Wigan

Last Friday we went along to the opening night of North Korea, An Exploration - an exhibition by our friend Dylan Harris from Lupine Travel. The exhibition is a showcase of a selection of rare propaganda posters and artifacts collected by Dylan from his travels to the country. There were some very interesting items and photographs from his collection on display.

North Korea, An Exploration exhibition at The Old Courts in Wigan
Welcome to Pyongyang!

North Korea, An Exporation is open at The Old Courts in Wigan until the 30th September.

North Korea, An Exploration exhibition at The Old Courts in Wigan
Poster from North Korea's participation in the 2010 World Cup
  
North Korea, An Exploration exhibition at The Old Courts in Wigan
We bought a set of postcards

North Korea, An Exploration exhibition at The Old Courts in Wigan
A book on Kim Jong Il

Also at the exhibition opening party was photography from Sandra Ratkovic's very interesting and colourful Moscow project.

Visit the Lupine Travel website for more information on the tours they organise. It's not just North Korea you can visit with them either, as they operate tours to other far-flung places including Chernobyl, Transnistria, Eritrea, Chad, Iran, Iraqi Kurdistan, Antarctica and more!

On Dylan's 2015 trip to North Korea he and his party competed in the first-ever Pyongyang Minigolf Open Tournament! Check out the blog post Mini Golf in Pyongyang, North Korea for more information and photos of the course, said to have been in Kim Jong Un's personal residence before he gifted it to the North Korean people and had it moved to its current location.

Mini Golf in Pyongyang, North Korea. Photo by Dylan Harris, Lupine Travel 2015
North Korea's first Miniature Golf course

Mini Golf in Pyongyang, North Korea. Photo by Dylan Harris, Lupine Travel 2015
The Pyongyang Minigolf course and red velvet covered bench in the centre where it is claimed Kim Jong Un sat while he directed the workers on where to place each hole

Links:
- Lupine Travel
- The Old Courts

Related blog posts:
- Wigan
- Mini Golf in Pyongyang, North Korea

Crazy Golf at the Mid Sussex Business Expo

Golf-themed business expo in Burgess Hill, West Sussex this Thursday.

The team at Network Xpress are organising the golf-themed Business Expo at The King's Centre in Burgess Hill this Thursday, 7th September. The Sussex-based business event organisers are offering a fresh approach to networking with new, fun and themed-events. In addition to the 60 exhibitors, keynote speakers, workshops and seminars there will be a Crazy Golf tournament running all day.

It sounds great.

Information about the Network Xpress Mid Sussex Expo 2017
Information about the Network Xpress Mid Sussex Expo 2017

Visit the Network Xpress website for more information on the Mid Sussex Expo and other events they run.

As a marketer I'm all for innovation in business and events. Over the years I've seen the good, the bad and the ugly of events and so it'll be interesting to hear the feedback from the Mid Sussex Expo.

Crazy Golf is experiencing a boom and is getting more poplar as a business tool. The team at Putting Edge are receiving a number of bookings from the corporate market and for events in my local area in the North West, while UrbanCrazy's range of minigolf games and course layouts have been going strong for well over a decade. One of the first portable courses I played was an UrbanCrazy layout at the International Direct Marketing Fair in May 2007. Our friends at Putterfingers also offer Crazy Golf layouts for a number of different business and leisure events.

The Trade On Tap Hole-in-One challenge from Plumb Center and Parts Center at the CIH Housing 2016 Exhibition
The Trade On Tap Hole-in-One challenge from Plumb Center and Parts Center at the CIH Housing 2016 Exhibition

More recently I played a very nice bespoke minigolf hole at the CIH Housing Conference and Exhibition at Manchester Central and a two-hole layout at the Prolific North Live Show at EventCity.

The Putting Edge minigolf layout at the Prolific North Live Show earlier this year
The Putting Edge layout at the Prolific North Live Show earlier this year

If you enjoy minigolf and marketing crossovers you'll like my ebook too - check out The Minigolfer's Guide to Marketing on Amazon. There's a preview of the book below.



If you'd like to know more about my marketing work and how I can help you and your business please do get in touch via my website.

Related blog posts:
- Business
- Marketing
- West Sussex
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour
- The Minigolfer's Guide to Marketing

Monday, September 04, 2017

Leisure Land Crazy Golf at York Art Gallery

Playing Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf course at York Art Gallery.


Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
A look at the first three holes

On Sunday 3rd September we swung by York Art Gallery to play Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf course. The 7-hole layout became the 451st we've played and 763rd visited overall on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour since September 2006.

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
Playing hole 2

In our match-up on the course I picked up the win with a score of 16 to Emily's 38.

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf course at York Art Gallery
My score was enough to top the leaderboard - the previous best on the day had been 26. Although when we walked back through the gardens just as the course was closing a score of 15 had been made later in the day

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf

The minigolf layout consists of holes and obstacles created by different artists from the contemporary art world.

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
Hole 1 - Reactor - Alligator Resort

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
Hole 1

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
Hole 1

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
Hole 2 - Yinka Shonibare MBE - Football Cloud

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
Hole 2

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
Hole 3 - Eyal and Ines Weizman - The Bridge of Königsberg

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
My favourite hole - it's always great to score less than 1 on a hole!

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
Hole 4 - Hetain Patel - Coloured Processor

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
Hole 4  not the easiest hole(s) to play!

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
Hole 4

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
Hole 4

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
Hole 5 - John Akomfrah - The Turkey Shoot Galactico

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
Hole 5

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
Hole 5

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
Hole 6 - Doug Fishbone - SOS

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
Hole 6

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
Hole 6

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
Hole 6

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
Hole 7 - Ellie Harrison - Life Raft

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
Hole 7

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
X marks the spot

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
The green on hole 7

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf course was open at York Art Gallery throughout the summer following its installation as part of an Art Happens campaign to bring the course to York. It was originally created for the Venice Biennale in 2015 and last year was in Nottingham and Derby. I played the course in Nottingham - it was 10-holes then. And indoors.

Who knows where it'll be installed next...

Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf at York Art Gallery
Emily playing hole 2

Minigolf is a popular theme for artists and we've played a few other art-installation pop-up crazy golf courses on our travels. Our friends of at A Couple of Putts have also created a few holes, obstacles and courses for art galleries and shows!

Visit the York Art Gallery website for more information on the exhibition.

Links:
York Art Gallery

Related blog posts:
- York
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour
- Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf in Venice
- Doug Fishbone's Leisure Land Golf in Nottingham

Videos of the course:
- Hole 1
- Hole 3 - scoring a '2'
- Hole 3 - scoring another '2'
- Hole 3 - scoring a hole-in-none!
- Hole 4
- Hole 5
- Hole 7

Crazy Golf at York Golf Range

Playing the Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range.

Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range

On Sunday 3rd September we visited York Golf Range in Towthorpe near Strensall to play the Crazy Golf course there. The 11-hole layout became the 452nd we've played and 764th visited overall on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour since September 2006.

Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range
Playing hole 5

Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range
Emily on hole 2

Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range
Playing hole 6

In our match-up on the Adventure Crazy Golf course Emily picked up the win with a score of 40 to my round of 42.

Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range
You get a nice scorecard to mark your round

Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range
The Rules
 
Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range
Hole 1

Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range
Hole 2

Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range
Hole 3

Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range
Hole 3
 
Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range
Hole 4

Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range
An interesting rule. Neither of us made it through the windmill

Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range
Hole 5

Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range
Hole 6

Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range
Hole 6

Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range
Hole 7

Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range
Hole 8

Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range
Hole 9

Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range
Hole 10

Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range
Hole 11

Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range
The obstacle on hole 11 is nigh on impossible to complete!

Visit the York Golf Range website for more information, opening times and prices.

Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range
The course is called Adventure Crazy Golf - a new synonym for us!

Crazy Golf course at York Golf Range
Emily on hole 4

As well as the Crazy Golf there's also a Driving Range, 9-hole Golf course and a good looking Footgolf layout.

The Footgolf course at York Golf Centre
The Footgolf course at York Golf Centre was a lot shorter than other layouts I've seen. It looked good, like a Footgolf 'Putting' course

Link:

- York Golf Range

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