PopStroke, a mini-golf entertainment center with a restaurant, bar and other amenities, is exploring a site in South Jacksonville.
City utility JEA is reviewing a request submitted May 11 for the determination of service on an undeveloped site at northeast Gate Parkway and Interstate 295.
The site is north of Synovus Bank at Gate Parkway and Ozark Drive and CSI Cos. at Gate Parkway and Baymeadows Road East.
A JEA request means a project is being considered and does not indicate a deal is done. Emerald Coast Permitting Inc. of Miramar Beach is the applicant for the project, described as a golf course and dining facility.
The request indicates a 180-seat restaurant.
The identified site is owned by Sawmill Timber LLC, a Skinner family group.
Neither PopStroke nor Sawmill Timber could be reached for comment May 11 or 12.
PopStroke describes itself as a “hospitality-focused elevated golf entertainment brand founded by Greg Bartoli, combining elevated mini golf courses, chef-driven dining, and event-driven social spaces.”
It says it has headquarters in Jupiter, which is in Southeast Florida, and Dallas and is backed by “strategic investors Tiger Woods and TaylorMade,” which makes golf equipment, golf balls, accessories, footwear and apparel.
“PopStroke continues to expand nationally, with over 20 destinations,” it says. Its first venue opened in March 2019 in Port St. Lucie, north of Jupiter.
The PopStroke.com site shows 21 locations in seven states, with the majority in Florida, with nine, and Texas, with six.
The Florida locations are in Daytona Beach, Delray Beach, Fort Myers, Orlando, Palm Beach, Port St. Lucie, Sarasota and Winter Garden.
“PopStroke brings a new spin to mini golf where we swapped the windmills and waterfalls with next-generation technology and custom-designed courses,” the company says.
“The PopStroke mobile app allows you to order drinks for on-course delivery effortlessly while keeping score electronically,” it says.
PopStroke said its locations have two 18-hole putting courses, jumbotrons and large TVs throughout the property, “complemented by lively bars and a full-service scratch restaurant.”
It says it also provides amenities such as an ice cream parlor, a playground and outdoor games like cornhole and foosball.
The Daytona Beach location opens at 9 a.m. daily, closing at 11 p.m. Sunday-Wednesday and midnight Thursday-Saturday.
PopStroke says Bartoli is a former Wall Street executive at J.P. Morgan, and his vision was “to create a dynamic, interactive mini golf and entertainment experience that brought everyone together regardless of age, background, or skill level.”
It says that in 2013, he founded JEM Capital, an investment firm specializing in leisure, hospitality, technology and real estate, “the seeds that would grow into the PopStroke experience.”
It says JEM Capital’s journey included the establishment of Lighthouse Cove, which Bartoli founded in 2013 as a mini-golf and sports-themed restaurant in Jupiter. It says it led to three Lighthouse Cove venues across the state.
The website calls Lighthouse Cove as the groundwork for the evolution of PopStroke, a name that honors Bartoli’s father and is golf slang to describe a short putting backstroke with a quick follow through.
It says it also created its proprietary mobile app by adding another company Bartoli founded in 2019, Heard Technology, which allowed guests to keep score electronically, order drinks for course delivery and place their restaurant orders from anywhere on the property.
“Since then, our brand has grown significantly, with Tiger Woods joining as an investor in 2020, and TaylorMade Golf Company as an equipment partner and investor in 2023,” it says.
It has expanded into Alabama, Arizona, Nevada, South Carolina and Tennessee.
In announcing the Cedar Park, Texas, venue opening for April 21, 2026, PopStroke said that location features two 18-hole mini-golf courses enhanced by PopStroke’s experience, including interactive screens on every hole and proprietary scoring technology that allows guests to track their game through the PopStroke app, order food and have beverages delivered directly to them on the course.
BarTenders, PopStroke’s full-service restaurant and bar, offers dining, craft cocktails, beer and indoor and outdoor dining spaces overlooking the greens, along with an on-site ice cream parlor.
The venue also includes an outdoor playground and games like cornhole and ping-pong.