Miniature golf may not be a conventional way to remember your dearly departed, but it seems to be working out well for one suburban Chicago funeral home.
Meet Ahlgrim Family Funeral Services in Palatine, Ill., a business that has boldly planted itself at intersection of golf and death. How? By building a mini golf course in the basement of a funeral home. According its website, the idea of converting the home’s little-used basement into a tricked-out game room (dubbed “Ahlgrim Acres”) was launched by its golf-loving founder, Roger Ahlgrim, in the 1960s and took off from there.
Following his love of miniature golf he began construction of one of his own. This kept himself and his only staff member busy while the funeral business grew. Over the years the miniature golf course took on a life of its own. By the time his children became school age, the basement housed a 9 hole miniature golf course, a full size shuffle board coarse, ping pong table, bumper pool table and a foosball table made by Roger during his high school years.
For those who think the idea of combining mini golf with mortality is a little unsettling, you’re in luck: it gets even creepier!
With a haunted theme, each hole has its own character. Hole 2 putts through an old shipping box used for rail transportation. Every course has a windmill, but this one also has a guillotine, mausoleum and hole 9 has a water trap.
Reports fail to state whether the Grim Reaper hands golfers a putter and scorecard to start their rounds, but either way this course is a hard pass for the GOLF.com crew. But if you’re thinking of paying a visit, here’s more info from a local news report.
