Williams · 1997 · Dot-matrix era (1991 to 1999)

No Good Gofers

Name: No Good Gofers
Brand: Williams

Design: Pat Lawlor, Louis Koziarz · Art: John Youssi

No Good Gofers is Pat Lawlor's last released Williams game, a 1997 round of golf spoiled by two gophers named Buzz and Bud. The art reads No Good Golfers with the L blown out, because from the gophers' side the golfers are the problem. You play nine holes and putt into the sinkhole while the gofers pop up from the ramp entrances to heckle you, and a setting called gofer attitude ships on very rude. The slam ramp drops away for a hole-in-one shot, the first ramp of its kind, and a spinning disc pays an award each hole. Vince Pontarelli voices Buzz and Jon Hey voices Bud. Pinball demand was falling, and Williams built just 2,711, fewer than Gottlieb's earlier golf game Tee'd Off.

Original 1997 Williams gameGames fitted with Cardona Pinball's Battle for the Green kit (2023)Mega Golf Ball Frenzy and Ultimate Golf Ball Frenzy promotional conversions (four made)

Spec at a glance

Maker: Williams
Era: Dot-matrix era (1991 to 1999)
Theme: Original themes
Year: 1997
Players: 4
Made: Williams, December 1997 (model 50061)
Design: Pat Lawlor and Louis Koziarz (software)
Art: John Youssi
System: Williams WPC-95
Display: Dot-matrix (DMD)
Production: 2,711
Size: 300 lb uncrated; 76 in tall, 56.75 in with the backbox folded
Also listed as: NGG, No Good Gophers, No Good Golfers

Bench check

Boards, playfield, toys and the trip home

Boards and batteries: WPC-95 put the batteries back on the CPU board, in a plastic shell right above the ASIC socket, a worse spot for a leak than on earlier boards. The driver board has its own weak point, eight 6A2 diodes in the always-on GI circuits that run hot enough to burn it. Later boards swapped them for jumpers, so ask for photos of the CPU and of the GI area.
Display: No Good Gofers has a high-voltage plasma DMD. In the display test, faded dots mean age, and sparkles, clouds or ghosting mean the voltages are running high.
Playfield: Ask for raking-light photos of the flipper areas, the two left inlanes and the area around the slam ramp. Worn paint shows as dull patches.
Toys and mechs: The ramp entrances lift to expose the two gofers, Buzz and Bud, as targets. The slam ramp drops for hole-in-one shots, and the spinning disc reads where it stopped with optical flags underneath. Ask for a video of both gofers popping up, the slam ramp moving and the disc spinning and stopping.
Cabinet and art: The art reads No Good Golfers with the L blown out by the gophers. Ask for a lit photo of the backbox art and photos of both cabinet sides.
Moving it: Uncrated it's 300 lb, 28.75 in wide and 51.5 in deep, and the backbox folds down to 56.75 in tall. Take the legs off and use a pinball dolly with two people.
Parts and code: V1.3 is the game code on record, and there's a manual. Cardona Pinball made a small run of No Good Gofers: Battle for the Green in 2023, a kit with a new display, computer and an 18-hole game. Three Mega Golf Ball Frenzy conversions and one Ultimate Golf Ball Frenzy were made from this game for a golf tournament.

What to check

Leaking CPU batteries and burned GI diodes on the WPC-95 driver board are the board faults. On the playfield, check the gofers, slam ramp and spinning disc all move.

01Gofers: Ask for a video of both gofers popping up. Each ramp entrance should lift cleanly.
02Slam ramp: Ask for a video of the slam ramp dropping and resetting. It should move without sticking.
03Disc: Ask for a video of the award disc spinning and stopping. The award shown should match where it stops.
04Batteries: Ask for a photo of the CPU board around the battery holder. You want clean traces with no crust.
05GI diodes: Ask for a photo of the GI section of the driver board. Brown, burned board around the diodes needs repair.
06Display: Ask for a photo of the DMD during display test. Every dot should light evenly with no sparkles.
07Playfield: Ask for raking-light photos of the flipper areas and inlanes. Worn paint shows as dull patches.
08Code: Ask which ROM version is fitted, or whether a Battle for the Green kit is installed. A kit game plays differently from the original.

Buying your first one? Red flags in a pinball listing covers the photos and videos to ask for, and the battery corrosion guide shows what leaking batteries do to an old CPU board.

Find one on eBay

We haven’t been through this game’s listings yet. Search eBay and run every listing through the checklist above. Ask for a video of a full game, a photo of the CPU board and photos of the playfield in good light, and ask what’s been replaced. Pass on any seller who won’t answer.

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Maker

Era

Theme

Read

No Good Gofers

Design: Pat Lawlor, Louis Koziarz · Art: John Youssi

Original 1997 Williams gameGames fitted with Cardona Pinball's Battle for the Green kit (2023)Mega Golf Ball Frenzy and Ultimate Golf Ball Frenzy promotional conversions (four made)

Spec at a glance

Maker

Williams

Era

Dot-matrix era (1991 to 1999)

Theme

Original themes

Year

1997

Players

Made

Williams, December 1997 (model 50061)

Design

Pat Lawlor and Louis Koziarz (software)

Art

John Youssi

System

Williams WPC-95

Display

Dot-matrix (DMD)

Production

2,711

Size

300 lb uncrated; 76 in tall, 56.75 in with the backbox folded

Also listed as

NGG, No Good Gophers, No Good Golfers

Boards, playfield, toys and the trip home

Boards and batteries

WPC-95 put the batteries back on the CPU board, in a plastic shell right above the ASIC socket, a worse spot for a leak than on earlier boards. The driver board has its own weak point, eight 6A2 diodes in the always-on GI circuits that run hot enough to burn it. Later boards swapped them for jumpers, so ask for photos of the CPU and of the GI area.

Display

No Good Gofers has a high-voltage plasma DMD. In the display test, faded dots mean age, and sparkles, clouds or ghosting mean the voltages are running high.

Playfield

Ask for raking-light photos of the flipper areas, the two left inlanes and the area around the slam ramp. Worn paint shows as dull patches.

Toys and mechs

The ramp entrances lift to expose the two gofers, Buzz and Bud, as targets. The slam ramp drops for hole-in-one shots, and the spinning disc reads where it stopped with optical flags underneath. Ask for a video of both gofers popping up, the slam ramp moving and the disc spinning and stopping.

Cabinet and art

The art reads No Good Golfers with the L blown out by the gophers. Ask for a lit photo of the backbox art and photos of both cabinet sides.

Moving it

Uncrated it's 300 lb, 28.75 in wide and 51.5 in deep, and the backbox folds down to 56.75 in tall. Take the legs off and use a pinball dolly with two people.

Parts and code

V1.3 is the game code on record, and there's a manual. Cardona Pinball made a small run of No Good Gofers: Battle for the Green in 2023, a kit with a new display, computer and an 18-hole game. Three Mega Golf Ball Frenzy conversions and one Ultimate Golf Ball Frenzy were made from this game for a golf tournament.

What to check

Leaking CPU batteries and burned GI diodes on the WPC-95 driver board are the board faults. On the playfield, check the gofers, slam ramp and spinning disc all move.

01Gofers: Ask for a video of both gofers popping up. Each ramp entrance should lift cleanly.

02Slam ramp: Ask for a video of the slam ramp dropping and resetting. It should move without sticking.

03Disc: Ask for a video of the award disc spinning and stopping. The award shown should match where it stops.

04Batteries: Ask for a photo of the CPU board around the battery holder. You want clean traces with no crust.

05GI diodes: Ask for a photo of the GI section of the driver board. Brown, burned board around the diodes needs repair.

06Display: Ask for a photo of the DMD during display test. Every dot should light evenly with no sparkles.

07Playfield: Ask for raking-light photos of the flipper areas and inlanes. Worn paint shows as dull patches.

08Code: Ask which ROM version is fitted, or whether a Battle for the Green kit is installed. A kit game plays differently from the original.

Buying your first one? Red flags in a pinball listing covers the photos and videos to ask for, and the battery corrosion guide shows what leaking batteries do to an old CPU board.

Find one on eBay

No Good Gofers

Spec at a glance

Boards, playfield, toys and the trip home

What to check

Find one on eBay

Compare with

Medieval Madness

Whirlwind

Fish Tales

Keep exploring

No Good Gofers

Spec at a glance

Boards, playfield, toys and the trip home

What to check

Find one on eBay

Compare with

Medieval Madness

Whirlwind

Fish Tales

Keep exploring