Table-top Golf game with coins?

Question

About twenty years ago I saw this game board. It was huge, the size of a table. Made of wood. And on it was an 18-hole golf course, complete with pegs and barriers for hazards.

You played with coins (or at least, when I saw it people were using coins). Using your thumb, you'd slide a quarter or penny or nickel, whatever you had presumably, and you'd bounce it off the sides of the board and the barriers and pegs, hoping to get it in the next hole. Each hole was an indented circle drilled out of the wood and was numbered.

Players took turns, and could hit each others coins out of the way.

I've been looking to find it again for ages without any luck. As big as it was, it was probably expensive and produced in a limited quantity. I've search the net for penny golf, quarter golf, coin golf, for years with no luck. Now that I see a board/card game section of stackexchange, I though I'd give it another shot.

Anyone heard of this?

Thanks!

Answer 1

What you describe sounds a lot like Carrom, but on a golf course-style board, so a (slightly gimmicky) Carrom variant. Do the games described on this page sound like what you saw? In particular, Bumper Golf sounds like a strong candidate:

Bumper Golf, published by S&S Worldwide is a version of the Carrom golf board game sometimes seen in parks and arcades. The game board depicts an 18-hole golf course. Players shoot wooden disks from numbered tee spots, trying to sink their disk into the equivalent numbered cup.

An American Carrom variant based on golf is also described on Wikipedia, but unfortunately there is no reference for further information:

A version of American carrom was played in Southern California schools in the 1950s–1980s, using a somewhat larger square board and wooden rings struck with cue sticks.[citation needed] There was both a golf version and a maze version. In the golf version, there was a series of nine "holes" (really just green areas on the board.) A player had to start at the tee for a particular hole and get a carrom coin completely within the green region to advance to the next hole. Sand trap hazards would cause the player to lose a stroke and lake hazards would cause the player to lose two.[citation needed] A modified commercial version also exists.

Answer 2

I played this game only a few weeks ago in Sweden! I went over to a friend's place for Christmas, and after dinner her family pulled out this really old game from Finland, just as you described! Using coins, 8 or 9 levels, with wooden obstacles to increase difficulty. You can play in teams (we did men vs women), and each player has 5 attempts to get the coin across the obstacle and into the scoring zone (the hole itself, or numbered sectors around it). After 5 failed attempts, you get 9 points. Hole-in-one is 1 point. Like golf, highest amount of points loses. It was a lot of fun! I forget what it was called... I'll ask my friend and get back to you.

Answer 3

I've got one to sell! My husband bought it in Defiance in the early 1980s. I don't remember much about playing the game, but it was played on a fairly big table golf course layout with short pool cues and had 4 disks that you had to shoot around the course. I was looking on the internet for the rules of the game!

Answer 4

I have this game. It is called Fore-par table golf. It was made by world wide games Inc. out of Delaware OH.

The board is made of all wood and is very durable. My game is in very good condition and I would certainly be willing to sell it to you. If you like you can contact me at: kikocsk@aol.com

Answer 5

Sounds a little bit like Shove Ha'penny.

Only cooler.

Answer 6

I think what you are looking for is called Strokes Table Golf (http://www.strokestablegolf.com/) It is a Carrom like game with a custom board exactly as you describe it. It has jumps, ramps, and other hazards. My feeling tho is this may just be the modern version of the game which is different than what you had played. They also have an iPhone app.

Answer 7

It's called fore-play golf .......