 Evaluation Summary - Category Ratings
Category ratings based on scale from 1 to 5 [3] = Meets Passing Criteria [4] = Excellent [5] = Outstanding / Best
( Only scores of 3 or higher are published. )
Product and service final rating is averaged from the sum of all evaluation category scores.
( With a total of 323 evaluation categories, only 6 of the applicable evaluation categories are featured for public view. )
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Critical Skills Development |
Educational Value |
FunFactor™ |
Innovation Level |
Marketability |
Visual Appeal |
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 Safety / Quality Classifications |
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CE Marked | UL Approved | JPMA Certified |  | (Not Applicable) | (Not Applicable) | | | ASTM Compliant | eco-Friendly | eco-Conscious | | (Not Applicable) | | |
| CPSIA Compliant | Independent Lab Tested | Independent Lab Name | | (Unconfirmed) |
| | LeadSafe™ - Surface Coatings/Paint
(Complies with 16 CFR 1303/CPSIA 101) | LeadSafe™ - Content / Substrates
(Complies with CPSIA 101) | PhthalatesSafe™
(Complies with CPSIA 108) | | | | |
| BPASafe™ (Complies with CPSI EN71) | Soluble Heavy Metals
(Complies with ASTM F963/CPSIA 106) | Mechanical/Physical (Complies with ASTM F963/CPSIA 106) | | | (Not Applicable) | | | Flammability - Solids/Textiles (Complies with 16 CFR 1500.44/CFR 1610) | Labeling of Hazardous Art Materials (Complies with ASTM-4236/16 CFR 1500.14(b)(8) ) | iWatchDog™ Approved (Complies with ICCS™ Certification Standards) | | | |
| UPC | Manufacturer SKU | Age Grading | | | | |
| Manufactured In | Safety Hazard/Warnings | | U.S.A. | None |
Golf On A Tabletop?
Golf on a tabletop? That was the first question that came to my own mind when I first looked at this game, but as they say, "Looks can be deceiving." Par Out Golf may very well become the next fad for golfers as well as those who are wanna be golfers yet never will be. This game is so different that it has to be the game that put the "U" in the word "unique".
Seeing is believing these days with most of us so to test out just how great this game could be, I decided why not take it a golf course and find out from REAL golfers. To accomplish this task I took Par Out Golf to the Wynn Hotel golf course in Las Vegas. I approached two men who were waiting for their turn to start on the course and inquired if they would be kind enough to give me their feedback from playing Par Out Golf while they waited. The gents were surprisingly very cooperative and sat down at a table to get into the game.
At first, the gents were a bit sarcastic with comments like, "This stupid game couldn't possibly be much of anything." His friend responded with a comment which made a point of how "...at least it was something to pass the time away until they Tee'd off." What they never expected was that soon afterwards they were really getting into the game! They were so much into the game that when some other gents came over to investigate what they were doing, one of the gents replied, "Mutton up would ya, we're trying to play the green." At that moment I was having a hard time trying to keep from bursting out with laughter.
By the time these gents were done with their game, they had staff, other golfers, and people in general, standing around watching the two men play Par Out Golf! Never did I ever imagine this kind of a response from people over what appeared to just be another simple game. This brings me back to my original question of "Golf on a tabletop?" I guess what happened at the golf course provides the answer to that question.
What's This Game All About?
You can rest assured of one thing without question, Par Out Golf packs the thrill and the action of REAL golf in an exciting board game for the whole family! Before the thought even enters your mind, No, not just Dad, this is for the entire family. Just as with the actual game of golf, the real sport, the object is for 1-4 players to move from the tee-box to the cup in the fewest strokes possible. The person finishing the round of 18 holes with the fewest total strokes in the winner! Is that simple enough? Oops, I forgot some other details which make the difference and make Par Out Golf so unique.
The key difference and uniqueness of this game is that you have swapped the heavy and expensive clubs and the ball for wet-erase markers, ink, and a richly illustrated 18-hole championship game board set! Has the shock effect hit you yet? That's not enough...with real golf it's a matter of you going to the golf course. With Par Out Golf, the golf course comes with you! The portability element is supreme with this game. Rather than have to quit a game when you have to go somewhere, just close the game up and take it with you to play at your next destination. Designed entirely around the official rules of golf, play is simple to understand yet impossible to master.
Revitalizing Memory And Having Fun Doing It
Ready to Tee-off on your practice shot? On the shot, a player moves their pen up from the "tee" towards the cup. The line that is drawn represents the path of the ball towards the cup. When a player stops, they go back and check to see if they hit any obstacles, landed in any hazards, or traversed out of bound. If they cleared it all, they mark their shot and keep shooting until the ball is holed. Seems simple right?
Now comes the added details I didn't share earlier...The twist is that after practicing, when it's time to take a shot, a player must do it COMPLETELY FROM MEMORY because the player's eyes must stay closed the entire shot! Since a player may never pass through trees (which you will see pepper each fairway on the course) and must try not to stop in the sand or water (in which penalty strokes apply), this can be a very difficult task. A Par Out shot can be as inconsistent as the real thing, and you can rest assured that the game that is played is never the same twice. The end result of this is that Par Out Golf helps to enhance your memory and other primary skills with repetitive use. You can revitalize your memory and have fun doing so.
An added feature to all of this is the fact that all of the pages have been laminated. This provides Par Out Golf with a very strong replay value and can be played an infinite amount of times. After playing, a simple wipe with a damp cloth is all it takes to get the greens and fairways ready for the next round! If that wasn't enough, Par Out Golf is non-toxic, portable, educational and fun for everyone!
Consumers Play It Top The Max
Consumers have no hesitation in telling you what they think of a product when given the opportunity and it isn't always what you desire to hear. This being the case, doing random hands-on consumer evaluation of products really tells you a lot. The REAL opinions that let you know just how good a product really is and if needed, how to improve upon it.
Par Out Golf proved to be an attention getter at a local multi-screen theater in Las Vegas which we used for this evaluation. To add a little flavor to the mix, we had a very large number of other toys, games, and other juvenile products as well, all being provided for random evaluation by consumers at the same time. The results from this effort were simply more than we could ever ask for.
Par Out Golf is so simple that almost any kid can quickly sit down, read the instructions, and begin play in a very short period of time. There is virtually no learning curve with Par Out Golf. For the participants at the theater, there was plenty of interest in playing Par Out Golf. The game caused plenty of kids to want to play; enough to need a sign in sheet to have a turn at playing!. What was especially interesting is that although we were trying to cater to kids, plenty of adults wanted to join in as well. This just went all the further to prove that Par Out Golf is a family oriented game. The queries by the parents alone spoke volumes of positive feedback which demonstrated that Par Out Golf was undoubtedly quite popular. Combining this with the feedback forms we received from the parents and kid's Par Out Golf pulled a very strong positive response in the random hands-on product evaluation. It was an overall opinion that Par Out Golf was "put the "U" in the word UNIQUE""
Your Opinion Counts
Your opinion counts whether you realize it or not. Maybe you were not on of the hands-on evaluation participants, but your opinion still counts all the same. We welcome you to share your opinions about this game or the product evaluation summary itself in our "Ask The Toy Man" Blog / Forum for others to see what you have to say.
A Breakdown On Each Category Score
While other organizations will define their ratings in a "blanket" method which simply defines each rating in an overall usage, we choose to take a different approach. Each individual rating that was assigned to this product, based upon our evaluation process, is briefly explained as to how that specific rating score was reached. The ratings for this product are listed below. Please remember that these are just six primary evaluation categories that are part of a far greater overall group of evaluation categories used for our product evaluation.
CRITICAL SKILLS DEVELOPMENT: Rating Level 5 - The level of critical skill development for anyone when playing Par Out Golf was not a challenge in the slightest to establish. The game provides a substantial stimulation to emotional reactions, motor skills, etc. and the actual amount of critical/cognitive skills stimulated is quite high. Coordination, memory, focus, attention span, executive action capability, as well as visual and spatial perception skills are all enhanced greatly from repetitive play with this game. The final analysis in our evaluation came to a perfect score in this category.
EDUCATIONAL VALUE: Rating Level 3 - The educational value for Par Out Golf was average in this category. Par Out Golf is a game that teaches you some basic familiarity of the real game of golf, nothing more in this category. You might say it can be seen as having a variety of contributing factors to educational usefulness in reference to skill improvement in reference to education in this category. The final analysis in our evaluation of Par Out Golf in this category was a rating of 3 out of 5.
FUNFACTOR™: Rating Level 5 - FunFactor™ was well up the ranking in scoring with Par Out Golf. "FunFactor™" was clearly evident as being at the very highest of levels during our random consumer hands-on evaluation. The kids who were playing with Par Out Golf, were becoming quite competitive and exercising their memory skills to the very highest to play this game. The level of fun appeared to be quite consistent with all of the participants playing the game. Par Out Golf pulled a perfect score in this category.
INNOVATION: Rating Level 5 - Par Out Golf is without question a game that can boast about its outstanding level of innovation in its design. The idea of developing a game such as this isn't thinking out of the box, rather they have gotten back in the box an learned how to take what they already have and build a better mouse trap with it in a sense. Par Out Golf pulled a perfect score in this category with a score in this category.
MARKETING VALUE: Rating Level 5 - The marketing value of Par Out Golf is nothing but the best! Par Out Golf promises a very strong potential in sales, especially so for the specialty market. I am willing to bet that Par Out Golf will find an additional niche in Golf courses and golf shops across the country! What is even better is that you can visit the Par Out Golf web site to learn even more, see demos, and so much more. Whether being judged in comparison to all games as a whole or in comparison to specialty games only, Par Out Golf still holds the highest value. Although the MSRP is a little pricey, the game is one which captures the attention of kids and adults alike and is a sure sell. Par Out Golf pulls a perfect score in this category.
VISUAL APPEAL: Rating Level 4 - When it comes to visual appeal, Par Out Golf really had it together. It really put a WOW in a person's opinion in regard to immediate visual appeal. When you combine the scoring from our own evaluation and the consumer feedback, Par Out Golf scored nothing short of perfect in this category. Kids were prompt to take notice of the game, and even parents were drawn to learn more about it. Par Out Golf a perfect score in this category.
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| Seal of Approval:
Approved |
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| eco-Recognition™
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Not Eligible |
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| Award of Excellence:
Approved
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THE TOY MAN® PRODUCT GUIDE AWARDS
"The globally recognized awards that are received by a limited few...
and give a product the well earned recognition it deserves!" |
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The
products and online services which become recipients of "The Toy Man® Award of Excellence" acheived an evaluation category rating average of [5] Stars, the highest level of rating available on a 1-5 scale evaluation model. The average is based upon the overall average from all applicable evaluation categories, not just the 6 evaluation categories featured in this summary. |
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"The
Toy Man®  Award serves as an emblem of recognition for products & online services that contribute substantially to positive skill growth and/or productivity. |
| ( This includes books, CD's, DVD's, consumer electronics & accessories, recreational games and equipment, home furnishings, juvenile, software, toys and specialty. ) |
This distinguished award is exclusive as well as unique, with the editor's signature which represents a product being selected as an  . |
PLEASE NOTE: The eChoice™ Award images which were used from 1971-1984, 1984-2007, 2007-April 2010 have been retired. Although the former versions of the eChoice™ Award have been retired, they still remain valid. |
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