How to play Mini Golf

What mini golf is

Mini golf, also called miniature golf or crazy golf, is golf boiled down to putting. The holes are short lanes of artificial turf with borders to bank off and obstacles such as windmills, tunnels, ramps and water. Everyone uses only a putter, and the aim is the same as on a full course: get the ball into the cup in as few strokes as possible.

Playing mini golf on AllFun

AllFun Pinwheel Mini Golf has six courses of nine holes, from Clover Meadow to the Moonlit Garden. The ball bends on slopes, slows in sand, slides on ice and bounces off wood, stone and rubber in different ways, while paddle wheels, gates, pipes and ramps move it around. Press anywhere and pull back like a slingshot, then let go; a dotted line shows the start of the path. On a computer, drag with the mouse, or aim with the arrow keys and putt with Space.

A hole in one earns three stars, under par two and par one, and each course gives a gold, silver or bronze trophy. One Mulligan a round and one Aim guide a hole are free. Play nine holes against Mako, Pixel, Nova or Vega in Vs a rival, try the Daily hole, or play a friend online, taking turns to tee off.

The rules

Par and the scorecard

Every hole has a par: the strokes a good player should need, usually two to four on a mini golf hole. Count every stroke, including misses, and add them up at the end; the lowest total wins. One under par is a birdie, two under an eagle, one over a bogey, and one stroke is a hole in one.

The stroke limit

Most courses set a maximum for each hole, often six or seven strokes. If you have not holed out by then, pick up and write down the maximum. On AllFun the limit is par plus four.

Water and out of bounds

A ball that lands in water or jumps the border usually costs one penalty stroke and is played again from where it was hit, or from a marked spot nearby. On AllFun, water adds a stroke and puts the ball back where you putted from. Many courses also let you move a ball resting against a border a putter-head's width away, without penalty.

Playing fairly

• Strike the ball cleanly with the putter head; pushing or scooping it does not count.
• Play the ball where it stops, except as the course rules allow.
• On many courses the player with the lowest score on the last hole goes first; on others everyone takes turns and each player putts out before the next starts.

Etiquette

Stand still and stay quiet while someone putts, and keep off their line to the cup. Leave the green once everyone has holed out, and write scores at the next tee, not on the green. If the group behind is waiting on every hole, let them play through.

Six putting tips

1. Pace first, line second. A ball at the right speed drops even when slightly off line; a fast one rolls straight over the cup.
2. Read the slope. Aim above the cup on a sideways slope and let the ball curl down into it.
3. Use the rails. On a straight border the ball leaves at the angle it arrived. A bank shot is often shorter than the way round.
4. Time moving parts. Watch a paddle wheel or gate turn once, then putt so the ball arrives as the gap opens.
5. Take two sure putts. On a tricky hole, leave the ball close rather than risk water for a hole in one.
6. Adjust for the surface. Putt harder through sand and rough, and much softer on ice.

A short history

Miniature courses appeared early in the twentieth century and boomed in the late 1920s, when thousands were built, some on city rooftops.

Mini golf FAQ