Minne-Golf 2023 – Downtown Minneapolis, MN

Played August 17, 2023

Reviewed by Mr. Tee

When we were working on the Minnesota State Fair Mini Golf course earlier in the spring of 2023, we were told by one of the fabrication shops, Street Factory Media, that they were also working on a pop-up course featuring Downtown Minneapolis icons. When the course popped up on Nicollet Mall in Downtown Minneapolis in late June, we were tagged by all of our friends in our hometown to give us a heads-up on this new and unique course. Due to travel and work, only I was able to get out in play in August of 2023 on a lovely afternoon. I parked near the iconic First Avenue music venue that I’ve spent literally hundreds of nights at and made my way to Nicollet Avenue near the corner of 8th Street to find the 9-hole course!

Rating

What a treat! A free mini golf course for folks in downtown Minneapolis during the summer months. A number of years ago, we played the temporary Skyway Open courses during the winter months but it was nice to have a chance to play outdoors. Each of the holes represented different aspects of Downtown Minneapolis including sports, food, culture, and architecture. Starting with a straight-forward hole where you drop the ball into a tower where it falls out onto the green and finishing with a classic loop. Pipes, jumps, unconventional gameplay and notable locations across the city fill up the 9 holes. There is a lot of attention to detail that helps show off the different areas of the downtown area. Some of the gameplay, especially on the Skyway-themed hole, could be helped by a little more test-playing but my only complaint is that the course isn’t set up more regularly. The course was in great condition in August and I’m hoping this comes back for many summers to come.

Look what I found in the heart of downtown Minneapolis on Nicollet

Appropriately named Minne-Golf although not the first in Minnesota to use that obvious punny name

Drop the ball into the top or middle level of the Foshay tower. 3 different 3 exits onto the green.

Head through the water colored turf under the Stone Arch Bridge to the cup. Pro note: Left route isn’t worth the risk.

Two holes in one. Head over the Stone Arch by these classic neon signs at St. Anthony Main

Restaurant themed hole where you start at the top playing pool style to three different holes

The fake food set up on the table was really well done and durable

Don’t believe any of the pipes put the ball in the cup with any consistency

Hole highlighting Minnesota sports teams located in downtown Minneapolis

Hole celebrating the skyway system that spans 9.5 miles across downtown. Great way to avoid the freezing cold winter months.

Love the look of the hole but gameplay was overly challenging, especially with this loose screw near the exit. I am happy to report that it was fixed on a later visit

First Avenue in Minneapolis is the best music venue in the world! This hole has a functioning speaker, cymbals, checkered turf and the iconic stars to properly represent this local treasure

The Spoonbrdige and Cherry pop-art sculpture by Claes Oldenburg in the Walker Sculpture Garden is an iconic and shows up in so many photos of the Minneapolis skyline

The colored walls are xylophones. Fun for making sounds with your ball but not for getting to the cup.

North Loop neighborhood appropriately represented by a loop

This guy used to work across the street from the Duffey building highlighted in this hole

Minneapolis Downtown Council Event Page

Location changes depending on the date but it is on Nicollet Mall between 5th and 10th St in Downtown Minneapolis

Pros

Great variety of gameplay
Solid mix of iconic downtown Minneapolis locations
Free to play with clubs and balls provided
Fantastic attention to detail especially on each hole

Cons

Gameplay on a few of the holes could have been slightly better
Only available to play for small windows of time once each month

Nerdy Notes

9 holes. No Par listed.
Variety of urethane putters and colored balls are provided for free for people to play
Sponsored by a variety of Minneapolis businesses and city institutions
Only set up for Downtown Thursdays which is the 3rd Thursday of the summer months and into the fall
All of the holes are accessible via a wheelchair