Skyway open putters along

Peri, from Target and Jennifer, doing PR for the Minnesota Chapter of the American Institute of Architects, discuss technique at the fifth hole of the Skyway Open miniature golf tournament on Feb. 27. This hole is a rendition of the facade of Minneapolis landmark Foshay Tower. I watched for a few minutes, and the intricate cabinetry on the game was impressive. In concept it was something of a cross between Skittles bowling and Pachinko, a Japanese game of luck. The next hole in the multi-block event was a replica of a bar littered with a weekend night's debris of bottles and glasses.

This event deserves some support. It should put the skyways on the local entertainment radar at least once a year, and the effort the hole designers put forth deserves notice. Go check out their website.

Note, update/ March 4.  I contacted the Leo Daly Architecture Office responsible for the hole design and construction.  They responded with some fascinating infomation, which I will quote in full here:

‘After the stock market crash of 1929, regulation minigolf links became too expensive for most people to afford. In spite of this, the desire to play this most popular game continued to flourish. The ingenuity of the players during this depressed period of American History spawned what became known as "Rinkiedink" golf. Undaunted by convention, enthusiastic players would use any space available to set up these unique and crazy courses.’

"It was with this spirit and the stated ‘theme’ of this year’s skyway golf classic – ‘Retro Minneapolis’ that the Leo A Daly design team conceived of our entry.  The project investigated the themes of history, games of the 1930-40’s, memory, and the haptic realm.  The work utilizes current digital fabrication technology, employing CNC routing, to create a ‘course’ within the façade of the Foshay Tower.  The parallels with the Japanese game of Pachinko are intentional. This construct also shares the quality of harmonic dispensation with the aforementioned game as the participants ball finds its way up the tower.  The tower appears carved out of the its base and invites one to discover it’s many contours during play.  Many thanks to CNC RouterWorks, JB Millwork and Pella Corporationfor providing labor, materials and financial donations for the effort!"