A mad scientist in a lab coat escorts you to registration, hands you a putter and a fluorescent golf ball, and points toward the first tee.
You receive a scorecard, which will become illegible after just a few holes of Monster Mini Golf in Miramar. But it won’t matter.
Because how relevant is score when a person putts before the glowing eyes of Gloria Estefan, Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson and David Caruso?
Monster Mini Golf, which opened in March in a converted home-furnishings store, is entertainment for all ages, with peppy music from the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s pushing guests through 18 holes of blacklight-decorated miniature golf — all with a creepy-but-not-too-creepy monster theme.
In air conditioning.
That’s a big incentive in Florida, says Linda Rozo, of Miramar, who bought summer passes for her boys, ages 8, 10 and 12.
“They didn’t have to worry about the weather, they played all they wanted and took turns keeping score,” says Rozo, who also played along with the boys, awarding $1 for a hole-in-one.
The blacklight makes the course’s orange rails glow — like a funky cemetery — and patrons check out their clothes when the light hits them just so.
“Everything looks better at glow-in-the-dark,” says Felix Marte, owner of the Miramar franchise.
The macabre motif includes the artwork on the walls. There’s the Rock holding a skeleton, Jackie Gleason outside his Miami Beach theater (which is showing “Smokey and the Bandit Rise From the Dead”), Andy “Gore”-cia, and a tree similar to the talking one in “The Wizard of Oz” (“You look like a million bucks! All green and wrinkly”). William H. Macy, Deborah Harry and Caruso are portrayed along the back wall. An interpretation of “Miami Vice” decorates the birthday-party room and game area, with an alligator driving a cigarette boat.
While the Miramar Monster Mini Golf is one of a chain of about 30 nationwide, the artwork is themed by region, so people, in, say, Buffalo, won’t see the Rock.
“Up there, the theme is more about wings,” says Marty Farrell, the company’s national marketing director and field rep.
The monster theme continues through the 18th hole, with a twist on the requisite knock-the-ball-into-the-clown’s-mouth finale. This clown, called Glo-Zo, has a skull perched atop his head.
Monster Mini Golf is at 14435 Miramar Parkway, just east of Interstate 75. Hours are noon-8 p.m. Sundays, 2-9 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays, 2-10 p.m. Fridays and noon-10 p.m. Saturdays. Admission is $9 for adults, $8 for children (based on height). The course has movable barriers, and there is no space from hole to hole, making it stroller- and handicap-friendly. Call 954-589-1878 or go to MonsterMiniGolf.com.
