New Winners & Big Summer Fun in June + July
Competitors from the 2024 Salty Seagull Pro Tournament
Is it hot in here? Darn tootin’! 5 AMA scoring events have already taken place since our last communique. Between June and July nearly 150 different putters participated in tournaments across the Midwest, South, and Northeastern parts of the United States. We never tire of seeing the smiling faces of all of people getting out to take part in fun and friendly competitions.
You can find the event pages for all of these recent events AND every AMA event linked on our new Event History on the AMA website. On top of that, you can find hole-by-hole stats and results for nearly event event in our almost 3 year history. We are utilizing the international standard platform, Bangolf Arena, and results look like this.
But let’s jump into it and In the words of the winner of The Shack tournament Jerod Mutter, GET IT!
At the 1st ever Rosebud Open in Kenosha, Wisconsin, 14 competitors played 3 rounds at America’s Action Territory on the Wisconsin Adventure course. In the 3rd round, Mick Cullen finished strong to win the event by 5 putts. R.J. Dusak won 3 hole 2nd place playoff with Ben Briselden. 3rd place finisher Ben Briselden had the most aces (8) for the day. Nearly all of the competitors in this event also competed in the M.C. Mini Masters which played this course as well.
Gary Hester (left) and Rick Baird (right) hanging with the Salty Seagull after taking the top two sports
One of only four people in the world to shoot a perfect game of Putt-Putt has a new title to his name. Rick Baird is the 2024 Salty Seagull Pro Tournament champion. He bested his friend and previous Salty Seagull champion, Gary Hester, with a tournament-best round of 33 in the 3rd round. 3-time Red Putter Pro Tournament winner Matthew Kraus finished closely behind in 3rd place. This tournament was delayed by a day due to severe rain on Saturday, June 22nd, and by all accounts, the weather was beautiful on tournament day. Congrats to Rick on his first AMA tournament win!
A record-high field of 55 players--54 of whom finished the day and 13 rookies--came together for the 27th edition of this six-round interstate Wisconsin / Illinois extravaganza known as the M.C. Mini Masters. Players from 7 states, played rounds two rounds at each American Action Territory (WI) , Congo River Exploration (IL), and Par-King (IL).
Despite the packed leaderboard, it became clear as the rounds progressed that it was a two-player race between Derek Hartmann and Bryan Akers. In the end, the rookie Akers won by a single stroke to become the first rookie to win the event since the 1st ever event.
Tons of awards and trophies were given out for accomplishments throughout the day and ultimately, a ton of people had fun during this long day of mini golf. Check out the event page for info on all the winners.
In the first event of the 2024 Southern Swing, The Putters League Atlanta hosted 44 competitors from 9 different states for the 1st ever Georgia Open. Four divisions competed at the Fringe in Roswell, Georgia in blistering hot weather on the 18-hole Chattahoochie Gulch course built by Castle Golf.
Tennessee competitive putting pro Joey Baldasano led from start to finish for five rounds after setting the course record at 29 in the first round. 2024 Salty Seagull Pro Tournament winner Rick Baird shot a 4th round 30 to take 2nd, passing Gary Hester, who took 3rd.
Kevin McKleroy won local Georgia pro division with -11 over five rounds In the Amateur division, Ty Pittard shot a 3-round +9 to take home 1st. Amanda Farahany placed 1st in the women’s division.
In the 3rd Shack Mini Golf Tournament, we had a new AMA winner! Jerod Mutter of New Jersey played consistently over two rounds to shoot a 2 round total of 124. This was 3 strokes better than the top score in 2023 on this wild Par 77 course in Manheim, Pennslyvania. Scott Kline took 2nd and Bryan Weaver 3rd.
In the amateur division, Luke Tolley shot a 69 (-8) to win by 1 putt over Chris Wagner. Both divisions played a closest to the hole contest on the massive Hole #18. Bill Mezier won in the pro division & Kristen Porr won in the amateur division.
Full Event Recap | Hole-By-Hole Results & Stats
August Tournaments
August is where the tournament season dials up to 11! 5 tournaments in a single month with tons of events to follow in September.
The World Minigolf Sport Federation’s annual World Adventure Golf Masters (WAGM) took play in mid-June in Brno, Czech Republic. We had numerous AMA members from around the world take place in the 3 day event including Tom Loftus, Vanette Block, Jeremy Inabinet, and Danny Tatum of Team USA. Lee Messinger and Paula Gay were the other Team USA members that competed on two challenging courses against competitors from countries across Europe.
You can find results and live streams of the play on the WAGM 2024 website. Congrats to all of the participants and especially to the teams in Great Britian and Czech Republic (Czechia) who had especially impressive results.
Since you last heard from us, there are several new Puttcast episodes recapping recent AMA tournaments mentioned above as well as the World Adventure Golf Masters (WAGM) in the Czech Republic.
AMA Members Spotlight
A two for one spotlight on an AMA couple living in the state of Georgia that organize the Putters League Atlanta events. Big fans of these fun loving folks!
Names
Amanda Farahany (AF) & Bryan Akers (BA). Co-Founders of The Putters League
Where are you from?
AF: Charlotte, NC
BA: Huntington, WV
When did you start playing mini golf competitively?
AF: We discovered professional mini golf in October of 2020 while in Myrtle Beach. Bryan has been playing competitively that year at the Masters and I started in May of 2021 at the US Open in Cape Coral, FL.
Favorite part of hosting tournaments?
Both: The camaraderie and getting to see local players grow. We have seen more and more growth of our locals and have started to see them traveling to regional tournaments which is incredible!
Favorite course either for fun or competition
AF: The Mini Blue at Baha Mar in Nassau, Bahamas. It's a miniaturized version of their actual golf course.
BA: For me, it's Par-King and Mini Blue in Nassau, Bahamas. Two totally different styles and both of them are great.
AMA Tournaments you've played already
BA: So far in 2024, the Coziest, Lighthouse Open, MC Mini Masters, and the recent GA Open.
AF: The Coziest and the GA Open
AMA scoring tournaments you're planning to play later this year
BA: Red Putter, TN Open, NC Open, & Putters League Championship. Most likely I'll play Matterhorn and mayyyybe O-Street. I have really been wanting to go to both. I am very intrigued by using my mini golf balls at Matterhorn.
AF: TN Open, NC Open, & Putters League Championship and likely the Red Putter.
Favorite playing partner
AF: Gary Hester.
What do you do outside of playing mini golf?
BA: I am the co-founder of The Backline Company. We provide musical instruments to concerts, tours, and festivals.
AF: I am a lawyer with a focus on civil rights and employment.
Goal for the 2024 season
BA: I was getting frustrated early this season. Looking back I think I was in one of those 'plateau' moments where it feels like results aren't getting better. I reminded myself how much fun this is and I have started to see the positive results I was wanting. All in all, I just want to play as much as possible.
Anything else you'd like to share with AMA members?
AF: Remember this is about having fun.
