Delcoland mini-golf is trying to make Delco even more Delco

Before they knew what Delcoland might be, Nick Reynolds and John McKenzie first came up with the name.

“One day we said ‘Hey, like Disneyland, how fun would it be to have a Delcoland?’” Reynolds recalled.

Reynolds, 41, and McKenzie, 43, had already begun their crusade to somehow make Delaware County even more Delco by opening the Splash Surf Club in Broomall, the Marple Public House (the first bar in Broomall in more than 100 years), and Delco Steaks, a cheesesteak shop in an old diner near their new bar — in large part because they needed more parking space for the bar.

But Delco Steaks took off, and as they were looking to open more locations last year (there are now six, with another on the way), Reynolds and McKenzie saw the building that once housed the iconic Charlie’s Hamburgers in Folsom was for rent.

Behind the building was a large lot overrun with high grass, but beneath the weeds, the men could see concrete. They asked the owner about it during a tour.

“Dude’s like ‘I think it was a mini-golf course before’ and we were like ‘Dude, that’s unbelievable! This could be Delcoland!” Reynolds said.

Nobody is sure how long the mini-golf course sat in disrepair, but it’s believed to be a few decades. The giant horse and bear figures atop the nearby Frontier Saloon were once decorations at the original course, Reynolds said.

After months of renovations, Delcoland opened in November 2021. It is believed to be the only miniature golf course in the nation dedicated to extolling the virtues of a single county.

“And we’re proud of it!” Reynolds said. “I tell you, we could do school tours here as part of a good educational series.”

If a county-themed mini-golf course was to open up anywhere, it had to be here, in Delco, where the pride runs so inexplicably deep that people not only hang Delco flags from their houses and take Delco flags down the Shore; they climb Mount Kilimanjaro with the expressed purpose of waving a Delco flag at the top.

“Delco is becoming its own brand,” McKenzie said. “And when you think of Delaware County, the people from Delco wear it like a badge of honor.”

So just how Delco are McKenzie and Reynolds?

Reynolds, who was described by a source as “610% Delco,” came to our interview in shorts, white loafers, and a pineapple-patterned Hawaiian shirt which he left open at the top so his gold chain and cross could be seen resting on his hairy chest (very Delco). McKenzie wore jeans and flip flops (also Delco).

Then, there’s the Delco dialect.

“Whenever I travel outside of this area, people come up and are like ‘Can I guess what your accent is?’” McKenzie said. “One guy said Australia.”

“One guy thought I was from England!” Reynolds laughed.

But perhaps the most Delco thing about McKenzie and Reynolds is that they’ve never left.

McKenzie grew up in Marple Township, where he still lives to this day, with his wife and four sons. Reynolds grew up nearby in Newtown Square and still lives there with his wife and five kids.

“I was one of seven kids, my entire family has four or five kids themselves, and we all still live in the same town and all of our kids go to the same schools,” Reynolds said. “And we never leave and don’t plan on it.”

At Delcoland, which they call the capital of Delco, the borough of Media be damned (”That’s the county seat, this is the capital of Delco,” Reynolds said), each hole represents a town and a notable landmark within that town.

When it comes to structural features on the course, there are no windmills or waterfalls, no Swiss Farm drive-thrus, or Wawa trash cans to putt around. The real artistry and nostalgia lies in the signs for each hole.

Reynolds and McKenzie enlisted Philly artist Hawk Krall to create the signs, giving him the Delco landmarks they wanted and then letting him run wild.

In the Media sign, longtime food truck owner and former professional boxer Augie Pantellas, a.k.a. the “Broomall Bomber,” is pictured wearing boxing gloves inside his food truck, which is stationed — as always — in front of the Delaware County Courthouse.

At one of the Folsom holes (yes, there are two) a Delaware County Daily Times newspaper honor box is posted outside of the first Wawa; at the other Folsom hole, the Frontier Saloon and the old Charlie’s Hamburgers are spotlighted.

“We still tell people we’re in the Charlie’s building,” Reynolds said.

In a Where’s Waldo-like twist, Krall also hid a nod to Delco Steaks in each illustration. In Chester, a Delco Steaks appears as an ad at Subaru Park, and in Radnor, a Delco Steaks truck can be seen speeding by Villanova University.

“Literally, every time I look at these signs I find something new,” Reynolds said. “When you come here, you see kids taking pictures under the sign and you also see the adults taking pictures and pointing stuff out. It’s a way for adults to tell their kids about their childhood.”

The town murals on the fence surrounding the course were created by students in art departments at Delco high schools. McKenzie and Reynolds made donations to each art department, which were matched by WNBA player Natasha Cloud, an alum of Cardinal O’Hara High School in Springfield.

“We wanted everyone from Delco to feel that sense of pride coming in here,” Reynolds said. “And if you’re not from Delco, you come in and you get a little tour and a little education about it.”

And now, here’s our picks for the three best holes in Delcoland:

1.) Hole 2: Clifton Heights

This hole is dedicated to the Bazaar of All Nations, a large indoor shopping center built in 1960 at the site of an old psychiatric hospital. Despite closing in 1993, the Bazaar, which had everything from a laundromat to a pet store in it, remains firmly entrenched in Delco lore.

“Now, the Bazaar is still alive here in Delcoland,” Reynolds said.

The sign features Mr. Pleate’s Comics; Jerry’s Records; a Dig Dug arcade game; a dude wearing a cut-off Journey t-shirt; a player piano; a Pinto parked out front; and a floating cigarette which appears to be smoking itself. The fallout shelter on the sign is a nod to when the Bazaar offered a family $2,000 to live in a bomb shelter in its parking lot for a week as a promotional stunt.

2.) Hole 15: Upper Darby

One of the two holes dedicated to Upper Darby, this one features the Tower Theater, the beloved Delco concert venue which has hosted everyone from David Bowie to Bruce Springsteen. At this Delcoland sign, be on the look out for nods to Gwar, ZZ Top, Lou’s Pawn Shop, R & B Records, 93.3 WMMR, and Desi China Hut.

3.) Hole 4: “Four for Four”

Despite having 49 municipalities in Delco, the fourth hole is set in exactly none of them. Instead, it’s a nod to the stadium complex in South Philly and the city’s four major sports teams.

Asked to explain this bold decision, McKenzie noted how deeply sports fandom runs in Delco and how everyone from Delco cheers for Philly’s teams. Plus, Delco Steaks opened a location inside the Wells Fargo Center last year, so there’s that.

On this sign, Gritty pours a lite beer over himself; the Phanatic appears with his hot dog cannon at Citizens Bank Park; and Swoop can be seen eating a hoagie and wearing an Acme arm patch.