What do you need to start playing minigolf?
Interest for the game, lots of patience, comfortable clothing, sports shoes, hat or visor,  sunscreen and some minigolf equipment .

1. Attire

2. Equipment

3. Minigolf practice at home

4. Where to purchase minigolf equipment

5. Planning to participate in the tournament.

 

Attire.

To play in the tournaments you will need collared shirts fro practice and tournament days, sports pants or casual pants (other jeans and pajamas), and sports shoes. Skorts and shorts will work well for hot weather. Visor or baseball hat in the bright day is a great help too.

Few players like to play with sunglasses. And it is fine if you feel comfortable to wear the glasses and they do not affect your ability to read greens. Players with astigmatism or severe nearsidness might consider contact lenses because glasses might distort perception of the playing field.

When you choose the shoes make sure they have good ankle support. "Minigolf" does not imply easy, it does require good indurance and ability to concentrate for long period of time. Practice before the tournament and game in the tournament requires miles of walking often times over uneven surface. People who struggle with foot pain after long walks might consider looking into proper foot arch supports by visiting one of the specialized stores or making appointment with the podiatrist. It will help greatly diminish or eliminate the problem and  will spare you from  ankle, knee, hip and lower back pain.

Playing in the sunny weather and wearing a baseball hat or wisor will help to save your eyes and avoid cataracts or macular distrophies later in life.

Equipment.

If you would like to play on Adventure courses or Microgolf courses purchase a regular putter and a few golf balls.

     Participating in the  tournaments on the International style courses is  lot more expensive. Therefore I will suggest- do not dart out and purchase anything. First you need to learn what kind of club  will work best for you . Here are thousands of World Minigolf Sport Federation approved balls. It is a good idea to consult with somebody who knows these to balls to have understanding what balls are most versatile and used often. You do need to know how to select quality balls to avoid excentric balls or balls with damaged surface. And you want to make sure you will play many years from now. Each ball cost 12- 14 Euros a piece and you can buy them only from European manufacturers which adds to your bill extra fees for foreign money drafts and shipping.
If you do decide to purchase equipment the information where you can do it  can be found at the bottom of the page.

      Each ball differs by its size, outer texture, bounce, hardness and temperature resistance. Some balls will be most played on one specific kind of course, some of them will be more universal but some of them you might use only once in a ten years. Besides the extreme precision and sensitivity playing on international courses the game is also very technical. You need to learn which ball will be the best on particular hole and how to prepare the ball to the right condition for the play. Players need to learn how temperature differences will influence chosen line or ball. Often times it also means to know how to prepare run itself for your shot.

Putters used for International style courses (betong, belt and eternite) are different from ones in regulation golf. The putterhead of special minigolf putter has rubber face. Besides the differences in the angle of shaft, length of shaft, putter weight, here are also differences in rubber used for putterhead.

If you live in Wisconsin you can come and practice on Team USA Training Center Course at no charge. Balls and clubs for practice on the course will be provided at no charge too. Training Center is non- profit and located on industrial property therefore you need to call for appointment.

      Does it sounds complicated? Yes, I agree, it is. But I can tell you one thing- it is extremely interesting. This sport does require a lots of practice and a lots of research to succeed but it is worth it.

 

Minigolf practice you can do at home.
      While waiting for outdoor season here are some very simple exercises you can do at home to improve your confidence on the course. For more ideas please visit page "Links to training ideas" You will find very valuable information provided by PGA specialists, increase your fitness with tips from pfysical fitness specialists and learn how to prepare yourself mentally for best performance in the tournament.

Putting in  a straight line.

You will need a putter (preferably with the aim line on the putter head) and  ball(s).
Find a leveled area on the wooden floor or beton floor in the garage or basement. On the concrete floor you can put down an electric tape to mark a straight line. Try to keep aimline of the putterhead parallel to the line of the floor. Try to putt your ball  straight ahead following the line. If you do not have aimline on the putterhead make sure that the face of the putterhead is exactly at ninety degree angle against the line you will be putting on.

Learning to aim.

Mark your starting point and place 4- 5 small objects in different directions about three feet away from the starting point. Try to draw an imaginary line between the aimline on the putterhead and an object you are aiming at. Then try to do light swing, perform a shot trying to reach the object with the ball.. Try the same with the objects placed in other directions. As your ability and confidence builds up gradually increase the distance from the starting point by three feet at each attempt.

Sensitivity training.

Place small objects at three, six, nine twelve and so on feet marks. Try to hit the ball in the straight line so that the ball stops at the three feet mark. Repeat few times, then try to putt so that the ball stops at six feet mark and so on. As you advance you can also try to mix distances on to next distance after you managed to stop three (five ) balls in a row at the desired distance.

For players who already are owners of the special minigolf balls.

You can do all the above mentioned exercises with the balls you have. When you are succesful with these exercises add one more component. Learn how your minigolfballs will respond being cooled down or heated up. Do a putt with a ball which is stored at the room temperature. Try to place the ball in the bucket with the cold water for 10 seconds, take it out, dry it and try to perform a shot. Try to notice how the balls response is changed after cooling down. Try to heat up the ball by rubbing it between your hands. Try to heat up the ball with the hand heater. Again try to notice how balls response is changed. Learn to notice differences in the ball's temperature by touching your cheek with the ball. All the knowledge gained from this training will help you to learn how to prepare the balls in the tournament setting and you will know what to expect from your balls when the outside temperature rises or falls.

 

Where  to purchase minigolf equipment?
Wide assortment of minigolfballs and putters for international style courses for purchase can be found if you visit World Minigolf Sport Federation's website www.minigolfsport.com and go to Partners page. Expenses include shipping and bank fee for foreign money draft because none of these companies accept creditcards.
You can also visit www. minigolfpics.com and  minigolfpics forum . In this forum players offer brand new and used balls for sale. You can also ask questions related to minigolf game or equipment. In the main page you can see photos from many international events and take a look at different  courses played in these events.

 

Planning to participate in the tournament.

To prepare properly for upcoming tournament season you need to make decision in which tournaments you will participate before the start of the minigolf season to plan your schedule accordingly and make your reservations for plane tickets, rental car and hotel. You also want to make sure that you will have few extra days for practice before the tournament. To help yourself in decision making you should call tournament organizer and ask questions about the tournament:

dates: if the schedule says that tournament is held May 15 and May 16 is reserved as rain date, here always is good chance of bad weather, so plan your return trip accordingly. Plan few days for practice too.

tournament fees and membership fee: USPMGA Tour players have to pay membership fee which is $40 a year for new member and $35 for returning members. Tournament fee is a separate fee and different for each tournament. For US Open and Masters here are several divisions: Open, Senior, Junior, Ladies and Amateur. If you sign up for Ladies and Open division you will pay fee for each division. Majority of tournament organizers allow free practice on the course(s) several days before the tournament. Few tournaments however require to pay for each practice round or practice day. Also ask what are course work hours.

application to participate in the tournament: each player has to fill out application for each tournament and mail it in with the tournament fee. Some tournaments allow only certain number of players. If so, mail in your application and fee in timingly fashion.

prequalificatiion: some tournaments have special prequalification requirements. Ask about details

 

equipment: you should ask what kind and how many balls you may use during tournament. Always remember that on one hole you may only use one ball.

proper attire: ask for specifics, some tournaments also have banquets which require nicer outfits.

 

tournament schedule: know what time tournament starts, how early you can start morning practice before the tournament, what time is the players meeting which gives you opportunity to ask questions about the rules or uncertainties in the game

tournament rules: ask tournament organizer tournament rules take your time to learn the tournament rules, it will make you feel more confident and will decrease your stress level. While practicing on the course ask questions about different situations in the game to more experienced players or tournament organizers. You should know how far you may move ball away from sidewall or obstacle and what direction, what are the rulings when ball goes out of bound, when the ball is considered out of bound etc.

practice before the tournament: introduce yourself to the tournament organizers and ask all unclear questions: rules, pairings , tournament format (bracket system, stroke play etc.), ask to introduce yourself to good players or local players who know the course well. This will give you an opportunity to ask for help with playing lines. For experienced player it is just another practice round and usually is not a problem. Have anote book with you and write notes for each hole: start position, where to aim, strength of shot, the ball used. When you know your first shots it is always a good idea to work up end holes. You can draw a map. Example: from 1 o'clock position ball has to be aimed 1 inch to the right of right side of the hole, from 6 o'clock postiion ball will play straight to the middle of the hole etc.

Have plenty of sports drinks and enjoy your time with your new minigolf friends!