A COUNCIL worker is teed off that the rebranding of a mini-golf course could cause offence to people with mental health issues.

Alan Battman has worked part time at Coate Water on the pitch and putt golf course for six years and has been offended by the rebranding of the mini golf course to ‘crazy golf’.

Mr Battman is concerned that calling the game ‘crazy’ is offensive to those who suffer from mental health issues.

He said: “I was always happy that the council always called its small course ‘mini golf’.

“All literature concerning this course has always referred to it as ‘mini golf’ in the six years I have worked there.

“I went to work a month ago and found that ‘mini’ had been crossed out on a lot of the signage and ‘crazy’ written in its place. I was offended and insulted by this.

“To say it makes me very sad to see would be an understatement.

“A mental health charity had written to us commending us on the use of ‘mini golf’ and not using the word crazy as this word is insulting and offensive to anyone who has suffered from mental health issues or lived with someone who has.

“I am proud to put my name to this campaign and will continue the fight to not use the word ‘crazy’ to describe a leisure activity.

“I am writing to many mental health charities to gather support and will be writing to senior NHS directors to also gather support.

“Mental health is as important as physical health – one in three people will suffer from some sort of mental health issue in their lifetime.”

Swindon Council, which is responsible for running the course, has said that it has followed other local authorities in a bid to get more people playing the game.

Spokesman Kevin Burchall said: “We would like to thank Mr Battman for his feedback, but we never intended to cause any offence with the name change.

“The decision to use ‘crazy golf’ was made following feedback from a number of our customers who said they did not know what mini golf was.

“Many other local authorities use the term crazy golf and, from a marketing point of view, it is a widely recognised description of this type of activity which we hope will attract more customers.”

HOW THAT GOLFING TERM BEGAN

MINIATURE golf, also known as minigolf or crazy golf, is a small scale version of golf.

It is thought that one of the best candidates to claim the title for the world’s first minigolf course is the Ladies' Putting Club of St Andrews, in Scotland, which was founded in 1867 and is still operating today.

It came about because women had become interested in golf but the social conventions of the day deemed it unacceptable for ladies to publicly perform the violent movements that golf swings require.

Crazy golf has won the heart of generations of families for its obstacles and challenges – although it falls under the same category as any other miniature golf course.

The Oxford English Dictionary defines the adjective ‘crazy’ as mad, especially as manifested in wild or aggressive behaviour or being extremely enthusiastic. The word crazy also describes appearing absurdly out of place or unlikely.