Today, we’re taking a tee-rific swing into the 95-year history of Cool Crest Miniature Golf in the Alamo City. It’s one of the oldest continuously operated miniature golf courses in the world.
This local spot holds a special place in many of our hearts — Think: Sunday Fundays with the family or date nights with your San Antonio sweetie — so, we thought we’d go down memory lane and revisit the origins of this iconic putt-putt paradise.
A hole-in-one history
Cool Crest opened its doors for business in 1929 before the Great Depression and also at the beginning of the miniature golf craze in the US. In 1937, Harold Metzger and his wife Maria leased the property from the initial owners who had built the original 18-hole course made out of mostly wooden rails lining the airways.
The Metzgers added a second 18-hole course in 1959 and re-engineered the original one using concrete as its structural foundation. When Mr. Metzger died in 1998, Mrs. Metzger ran the business until she closed its doors in 2008.
In 2013, the Andry family from San Antonio purchased the business with plans to restore the golf course to its original beauty. The renovated golf course finally reopened in 2016 for miniature golf enthusiasts all over to enjoy.
Putt-worthy fast facts
- On the 1929 course at hole 18, there is a small gravestone where Mrs. Metzger’s beloved dog, Pidlepadle, is buried — the pup lived to be 19 years old.
- The course has nearly 800 banana trees on site which are cut down during winter and are allowed to grow back in the spring.
- In 2009, The San Antonio Historic and Design Commission voted to designate Cool Crest a historically significant site.
- Lastly, in the fall of 2020, the Metzger Biergarten opened and was named after the original owners — it sits where the Metzgers’ house once was.
Don’t miss: Cool Crest also hosts a variety of events throughout the year.
