Mini Golf and Game Courts Open at Michigan’s First “Outdoor Hotel”

18-hole Modular Advantage Mini Golf course along with a putting green and game courts designed and installed by Adventure Golf & Sports

(Traverse City, MI) An 18-hole Modular Advantage® Mini Golf course along with a putting green, shuffleboard and lawn game court (for croquet, bean-bag toss, and lawn bowling), all designed and installed by Adventure Golf & Sports (AGS), were recently opened at the Alpen Bluffs Outdoor Resort in Gaylord, Michigan. Rob Platt, co-owner of the resort says, “Alpen Bluffs is Michigan’s first outdoor hotel.”

When all construction phases are completed, the resort will have room for 227 RV sites, 30 fully furnished camper cabins and 14 “glamping” yurts. Besides the mini golf and lawn game courts, other amenities currently include a waterpark, pickleball courts and pedal carts/bicycle rentals. The resort also includes a camp store, a full-service grocery store (Alpen Market ) and a full-service restaurant/bar (called Mulligan’s at the Bluffs) which sports seven golf simulators. Opening later this quarter will be an outdoor pool with cabanas, outdoor movie theatre, “Gaga Ball,” sand volleyball courts and more.

Platt says their “Alpen Point Mini Golf ” course is not a typical miniature golf course.

 “These guys (AGS) do stuff that’s a little bit different,” says Platt. “I’ve never seen miniature golf holes with sand traps included. They’re not filled with sand, but they have a beige-colored turf surface to look like sand surrounded by rough turf. The general public thinks that’s kind of cool, too.

“It’s one thing to go to a mini golf course and historically everything’s the same. But now companies like AGS are doing some unique things…You’ve got hills, you’ve got rough areas and that’s the new thing and AGS can do all that stuff.

“It’s not a concrete course. It’s got these interconnected panels underneath the turf. So those panels can be raised or lowered depending on how the design of the hole was intended to be. And it also helps with drainage. Water goes right through the turf and right through the panels that are perforated. From a maintenance perspective, it’s a lot easier for us.

“Just from a cost perspective, too, this stuff can be cut into all different shapes and sizes and the interlocking pieces are quite easy and a lot faster and cheaper than a more pronounced structure underneath… cheaper than concrete plus it helps with the drainage…

“The first nine holes that are ADA compliant are essentially flat. The second nine holes are much more challenging. It’s a little more hilly than the first nine and we built-in some off-site ponds and some fountains that tie-in to the course…

“We’ve had a lot of repeat customers which is great, and I think they’re all having a great time.

“We have a lot of social activities as part of the resort, so just as an example, recently we had a hole-in-one contest. We’ll have contests intermittently throughout the course in any given week. We’ll pick a hole and maybe give out free ice cream or something like that for people who get holes-in-one. It’s been good. We’re leveraging resort guests who are going to our grocery Market. We’re also pushing it at our restaurant, so if the kids are getting antsy and they’re already done eating, the parents can suggest they go play 18 holes of mini golf while the parents finish eating and give them some time to relax.” 

Platt, whose career has included managing multi-family and mixed-use apartments, also observed, “They (AGS) were quick and efficient. We couldn’t ask for a better experience…they did a great job.”

Adventure Golf & Sports (AGS) is a global leader in the design and installation of fun, interactive, cost-effective entertainment attractions like Miniature Golf, Pickleball, Shuffleboard, Bocce Ball, Duck Pin Bowling and other game courts. Besides traditional, permanent concrete  installations, AGS has long term experience installing interlocking panel system versions like their environmentally-friendly Modular Advantage® Mini Golf system and Bunkers & Bumps™ style courses for a variety of  indoor and outdoor applications for family entertainment centers, amusement parks, retail centers, hotels, resorts, campgrounds and RV parks, as well as designing and installing on rooftops, piers and cruise ship decks. AGS is also the exclusive sales agent and installer for the high-tech mini-golf RemarkaBall© in the U.S. and Canada.

 For more information about the AGS Modular Advantage Mini Golf system, as well as custom designed miniature golf courses from AGS and pre-made portable systems that can be used in a variety of situations, email info@agsgolfandsports.com, call (231) 922-8166 or visit www.AGSGolfandSports.com.

Contact: Scott Lundmark, President

               Phone: (231) 922-8166 or E-mail: Scott@adventureandfun.com

Contact: Phil Callighan, Sr. Account Executive, Knorr Marketing

   Phone: (231) 534-9701; Mobile: (231) 342-7590

               or E-mail: philc@knorrmarketing.com