What happens when football and golf are combined? Soccer golf!

As of summer 2018 there’s a new activity on offer in Wagrain-Kleinarl - soccer golf. What is it exactly? That’s what I asked myself, as I’m not a football fan and the word soccer is not high on my list of priorities. However, it’s always worth trying out new things, before writing them off.So, let’s start at the beginning – soccer golf is, as the name suggests – a mix of football, golf and crazy golf. As it doesn’t make much sense to hit a golf ball into a goal, it’s more logical to make the players kick footballs through a number of obstacles – with as few shots as possible.
As I’m not the best footballer, it’s hard to convince me that this is going to be fun. Yet, supposedly good footballers are often worse than amateurs at soccer golf, as the obstacles are an unfamiliar challenge for the experts. But in the end up my work colleagues manage to persuade me to take part and on a Thursday in August we head off to the soccer park in Wagrain-Kleinarl, which is situated right next to the valley station of the “Rote 8er” cable car. The admission fee is just € 11,00 per person and everyone has to leave a deposit for their football – it doesn’t matter what - car keys, jewellery or money.  Afterwards we head off towards the 18 holes, which make up the course covering an area of around three hectares.
As we are ten players, we split up into three smaller groups and each group starts at a different hole, as the sequence is not so important. At the start of each course you’ll find an information board with a description of exactly where the ball has to go through, round or in. In addition, the par for the course is stated, which describes the level of difficulty in golf (the higher the more difficult). After the third hole, I have to confess that soccer golf is great fun. And after the seventh hole I’m completely taken with this unusual activity – but only because I required the least shots to get the ball into the hole.
After nearly two hours we’re finished and in agreement, that we’ll definitely be back – even when we lost on points compared to other groups. Afterwards we rounded off the evening cosily in the Niederbergstüberl, which is situated right next to the Soccer Park in Wagrain-Kleinarl, and toasted our success. Come and see for yourselves!

Tips & Info:Here you can find more information about the Soccer Golf Park in Wagrain-Kleinarl.
photo credits: TVB Wagrain-Kleinarl