Puttshack, a national and global chain of mini-golf houses, has answered the call, using technology to reinvent the game without sacrificing the challenge that makes it worth playing. The chain has built its 11th national and 15th global location at the Village on the Parkway shopping center in Addison and opened it to the public on Wednesday.
The Puttshack experience plays just like the putt-putt golf course that every child of the '80s went to on a friend's birthday except for two notable differences: the goal changes from hole to hole and the scoring is completely different.
That's right. There are no confusing eagles, par or bogies in this game, and there's no need to use one of those annoying tiny pencils to keep track of the score. It's all automated.
"We've taken the tech and put it inside of a golf ball," says Chris Lockwood, Puttshack's chief operating officer.
Puttshack in Addison has three 9-hole courses and a fourth on the second floor that's still under construction. An automated system called "Trackaball" keeps track of every stroke and hole a player takes and makes in their game. It's the same patented technology used to track balls at the TopGolf driving ranges.
The scores are displayed on screens placed at each hole. A player's score plays out over a point system based on what's on the course and what happens to the ball after it leaves the teeing area. A hole in one is worth 50 points, and holes with two or more strokes are worth less and less the lower the stroke count goes. There are hazards that can deduct points and special areas that can earn you more points depending on the hole you're playing. The "Supertubes" are high-jackpot areas that can give you a shortcut to the final hole and bonus points if you're willing to risk taking the shot and ending up in a hazard area.
"It allows you to focus on having a great time and not keeping score," says chief technology officer Ben Shepard. "It's also so you can't cheat."
Jason Dilworth attempts to go for the Supertube on the eighth hole of the Sapphire course at Puttshack in Addison.
Danny Gallagher
The theming designs are big, bold and downright fun. Each course starts with a simple mini-golf challenge hole, but depending on the course, the challenges get ramped up and ridiculous the closer you get to the final hole. Some of the holes include a massive beer pong target in which you putt your ball up a ramp to get it in one of 10 giant red Solo cups. The green cup in the middle — known as the "freshmen cup" — serves as a Supertube target.
One hole is just a long bowling alley with holes underneath the front pins. The one pin serves as a Supertube and the rest offer bonus points before ramping your ball to the final hole. Anyone who's ever played a round of mini-golf knows the challenges a bowling alley presents. Your ball goes from a yielding felt carpet to the hard, unforgiving slickness of a wooden floor, forcing you to change your strategy and swing to accommodate the unorthodox putting conditions. Imagine trying to bowl a frame on an alley loaded with crabgrass. It's the opposite of that but just as challenging.
One entire course is dedicated to the classic video game arcade. The course starts with interactive holes that are themed to look like an air hockey table or the playing field for a game of Tetris with pieces that move back and forth blocking your shot while you're trying to putt. There's even a huge arcade cabinet called Putt-Man, a fun homage to the arcade staple Pac-Man featuring ghosts as obstacles.
Addison's Puttshack has another feature that the company says is new to the entire chain. The Challenge Holes are six new private putting pods that parties can reserve for a certain amount of time and play a series of interactive putting games while enjoying food and beverages.
"If you don't want to walk around, you can sit there and play in one spot and have our wonderful wait staff bring you food," says Josh St. Pierre, Puttshack's director of operations.
The pods each have a giant screen that present different targets and let players putt golf balls in slots at the top of a small hill just underneath the screen. The games include a "Sitting Duck" shoot gallery, a "Block Breaker" game, a "Pinpoint" accuracy target game and a "Tug of War" in which two players putt golf balls to pull a rope across the center. Putters can compete to get the highest score purely for bragging rights or bet on who has to buy the next round of drinks.
Puttshack opened on Wednesday, and staff members suggest that you make a reservation. A mini-golf game that's fun and doesn't require the skills of a PGA putter is sure to fill up fast.
