This is an easy one. Of course they are athletes. There are plenty of different types of athletes in the world. Precision and timing involve an athletic skill just as much as shooting a basketball.
although m a fan of MS but i will prefer chrome since its DOM is very resembling to IE and and in accordance to W3C but Firefox is just a mess for making trouble specially to the developers and designers..
Golf Association for an exemption to the U.Having fallen out of the top 50 in the world at the deadline, he was debating not showing up for the qualifier.Tiger Woods shot even-par 72 on Thursday during the opening round of the Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village Golf Clubs, where he was unable to birdie any of the par 5s and made just two all day.Open, only to be turned down.SINGH RELIEVED: Fiji's Vijay Singh thought he was out of luck when he asked the U.
I love golf, I love playing golf and I will be good again, I know I will.Woods has struggled on the golf course since his fourth-place finish at the Masters, and how well he is received in the coming months is something companies will monitor.It's just a process and I'm going through the process.I know I've spent the last 20 years thinking that golf was it.I'm enjoying the ride and even shooting 78 today, it at least lets me know where I'm at.You realize real quick what's important and you realize real quick that golf isn't the only thing," he said softly.
Golfers are no athletes, simple as that in my opinion.
Todd F. - 14 years ago
I have to agree with those who have kept this discussion to the bare minimum basic definition. As defined, an athlete is: a person trained or gifted in exercises or contests involving physical agility, stamina, or strength; a participant in a sport, exercise, or game requiring physical skill. Does a golfer fall under this definition? Of course they do. Obviously a golfer does not need the strength that a football player needs or the stamina a marathon runner needs, but yes, to play competitively, they do need some type of physical agility, stamina, and strength.
Steve - 14 years ago
Golf a sport? Golfers athletes? Pull your heads out of your a**es. Just because it's hard, doesn't make it a sport. Walking 18 holes a day, 4 days in a row? Are you serious? You might get an athlete playing golf, but being a great golfer doesn't make you an athlete. Can Tigress Woods do anything else other than play golf? Can that cartoon through a football, catch one? Can he dribble a basketball, shoot a 3 pointer, a finger roll layup? He makes fun of hockey? Maybe Elin can head back to Sweden and find a real man, a real athlete, like a hockey player, or stay in Florida and snag a football player. Here is how you define an athlete: Speed Power Agility Reaction Quickness. And throw in instincts and actual head-to-head competition. Does golf have any of that? Roger Federer is 10x the athlete Tiger is. He should have gotten Athlete of the Decade. If you are never moving your body, your entire body, at full speed and showing a high level of coordination, it is not a sport. People that say golf is a sport are people who only know how to play golf and are no good at anything else. Seriously, think about it.
InvisibleNinjasAreAthletes - 14 years ago
The truth of the matter is that not all golfers are athletes: read John Daly. With this statement being true, that leads to the fact that you don't have to be athletic to play golf. However, to play golf at the level Tiger does, you must be an athlete. Tiger is a FREAK athlete that would probably be a professional athlete in another sport had he grown up playing it his whole life. Regardless of what has happened off of the links, Tiger has proven to be the Athlete of the Decade on the course.
Matt - 14 years ago
Damn Rene, I'd say you hit the "golf ball" on the head w/ that accessment.
And you did so, without the ego and hypocriticalness of my own posts!
So there you have it people. Golf is a game. And the participants are "Players" and not athletes.
rene - 14 years ago
Golfers are not athletes. The very term athletics implies some fitness and golfing does not require fitness. In most sports we walk only when we are tired. In gold that is all they do. And the drive is more technique than brute strength. The perfect example of golf NOT being an athletic contest was last summer when a 59 year old almost won the British Open (I think it was). In what athletic endeavor do you ever see 59 year olds competing with 29 years at the top levels - the answer is NONE. Golf is GAME and golfers are players, not athletes.
Bill - 14 years ago
The question is whether golfers are athletes and not if it is a sport. The answer is very obvious.....you do not need to be an athlete to play golf. To be an athlete you must be physically fit. To be a golfer you must have exceptional skill but you do not have to be anywhere near physically fit. My classic example with my buddies is when you can go out on a golf course and have a physically fit 20 year old with a five handicap go against a sixty-five year old with a four handicap and the sixty-five year old kicks the twenty year olds butt then you know that golf is about skill and not about being an athlete. If you are a golfer you know that the above example happens every single day of the week. You will never find a sixty-five year old (no matter what their skill level) competing against a twenty year old in basketball, baseball, football, soccer, swimming, etc. etc. I am not taking away the fact that to be a top golfer it requires a lot of dedication, mental training, and practice but it definitely does not require you to be an athlete. All you have to do is look at some of the top golfers...beer gut Mickleson, lazy ass Davis Love, and the old time greats like Fuzzy and the Walrus. There is nothing you can say that can make me believe that golfers are athletes....and by the way I love to play golf.
Matt - 14 years ago
Justin,
First off, I obviously got way under your skin with my "opinion" post. Try to un-bunch your panties nerd. You're the exact person I'm talking about in my original post. Get away from the spoon fed conventional wisdom spewed by your fellow nerds and think for yourself. You know, basically be a man for once in your pathetic life.
As another enlightened person above mentioned, golf is a leisure activity. Much like lawn darts or playing pool.
Walk into a pro (or college) baseball, basketball, football or hocky locker room and ask them if golfers are real athletes. They're probably going to laugh first and then give you a wedgy. But good luck with your argument, we'll have to agree to disagree Mr. Golfer.
Jamarcus - 14 years ago
Justin. Good points (especially calling out Matt). Golf requires physical athletic ability (hand eye coordination, strength, flexibility). End of story.
Justin - 14 years ago
Matt -
I love how egotistical and hypocritical you are. You are such a stud and all Americans are fat and lazy....right? Please feed us Americans another crock of shit, so that we all don't think for ourselves. Sounds like they feed you a lot of American stereotypes from whatever magical land you are from where everyone thinks for themselves.
Are golfers "athletes"?
My opinion is that some are and some aren't. Keep stereotyping here people. You can find non-athletic football players just as easily as you can golfers.
And some of you people reason that because YOU get drunk and smoke while playing golf doesn't make it a sport is ludacris. By that reasoning basketball isn't either because Ron Artest just admitted to being drunk and playing NBA games. Babe Ruth was drunk half the time he played.
Do you have to be an athlete to play golf? basketball? football? climb a mountain? - that's another debate all together.
Matt - I love your reasoning. Here is your quote: "Is golf a sport? No. It is not. Therefore, the only logical conclusion is that golfers are not "athletes" simply because they play golf.
What you are telling me is that because you say golf isn't a sport means that golfers aren't athletes. You are so wise. What makes golf not a sport? Please enlighten us oh great one.
I still haven't seen anyone on here give an intelligent definition of what an athlete is and why golfers wouldn't fall under that category.
I also, love the foreigners who hate on Tiger. Do you all have a better golfer in mind? I'd love to hear about how many majors that person has won.
adam - 14 years ago
Just because golf involves walking 18 holes and yes that might be far, since when did walking become a sport. Maybe if golfers were carrying their own golf bags, but they're not. If walking is tough and a sport, wouldn't those Olympic speed walking marathons be sold out and have huge ratings. Gimme a break. Golf is just a skill. It is certainly not a sport.
Harry - 14 years ago
I would like to see a study with how many calories are burned golfing versus playing baseball. I can pretty much guarantee golf wins.
CW - 14 years ago
obviously, you've never palyed golf. You're an idiot if you think golf is not a sport.
Robert - 14 years ago
I have to laugh at those who degrade golf but think that time spent out on a grass lawn scratching your privates for three + hours with the exception of possibly four brief breaks of activity is actually a sport. Take that Derek Jeter and those who think that watching two guys playing catch for four hours is exciting.
By the criteria used by many here, soccer is the only true sport and yet Americans hate it.
mongoose - 14 years ago
If you consider walking around a golf course 4 days a week to be "athletic" then you need to get your lard asses off of the couch and your fat fingers out of the potato chip bag. I think that says more about the sad state of your average American more than it does about whether or not golf is a sport. Personally I consider golf to be a leisure activity. Billiards takes plenty of physical skill but I'm not about to consider that a sport. Golf has a senior tour for cryin' out loud and god forbid if anyone in the galley makes a sound when a golfer is taking a swing. Wouldn't want any crowd noise like there is in baseball, basketball, football, hockey, etc. And name me another "sport" in which the participants can drink or smoke while playing. Every golf course I've ever been to has a beer cart careening all over the course offering every "athlete" a cold beverage if they want. Throw body checking in there or make the golfers try to hit the ball while it's moving and I might reconsider my thinking.
Branden - 14 years ago
We are talking about two completely different subjects here. Golf is indeed a sport, which requires physical skill, i.e. hand/eye coordination, flexibility, strength, balance... Are all golfers necessarily athletes? No. I personally don’t believe that Tiger, although a tremendous athlete, should have been voted athlete of the decade. Was Tiger sportsman of the decade, absolutely, but athlete? No. In my opinion this is a ridiculous, stereotypical question, asking if golfers are athletes. Sort of like asking if you consider Caucasians good dancers. Some are, some are not. They either need to change the phrasing of the award to sportsman or give it to someone who has won the Gatorade Triathlon. Is golf a sport, yes. Are ALL golfers athletes? Common....
Matt - 14 years ago
Let me get this straight; walking 18 holes 4 days in a row, standing still to hit a ball that is not moving makes golf a sport?! Wow, the people taking that side sound like complete nerds, and only re-emphasizes just how stupid most Americans are these days. Most Americans only follow what conventional wisdom says, and never think for themselves. That's what I think is going on here. A bunch of classroom nerds, want to consider themselves "athletes", and they love them some Tigger Woods, so of course they're going to defend him and the sport. Doesn't mean they have done any actual thinking for themselves though. They have simply been spoon fed a crock of shit and they've eaten it up.
Lets get to the point of the poll. Is golf a sport? No. It is not. Therefore, the only logical conclusion is that golfers are not "athletes" simply because they play golf. Michael Jordan played golf and he is an athlete, but he's not an athlete soley because he plays golf. Tiger may be a great athlete, but soley playing golf and being really, really good at it, does not make him an athlete.
How mentally tough does an NFL QB have to be to stand there and deliver a pass w/ Ray Lewis barrelling down on him? How mentally tough does a champion bowler have to be to roll a perfect 300? Or a pool player to make a tough shot?
I live in Colorado, and I hike 14,000 foot mountains like it's a stroll in a park. Do I consider myself an athlete? That feat alone is tougher than walking 18 holes 4 days in a row, but I don't consider myself an athlete because I hike 9-12 hours round trip in one day. But I also snowboard and I consider myself an athlete because of everything required for me to be a decent snowboarder. Conditioning, balance/coordination, strength, endurance, quick reflexes, etc. Not to mention the mental toughness to go down a mountain knowing an avalanche could hit any minute. But yeah, golfers are such extreme athletes! :sarcasm:
Pbombz - 14 years ago
When you play chess the way I do you better be strong and able to hold your own if things get dicey
moag - 14 years ago
saying golf is a skill is true, it is a skill, but every athlete in other sports needs to be skilled to be successful
Yaiir - 14 years ago
Chess doesn't require any physical talents. Golf does.
Pbombz - 14 years ago
Chess is "mentally demanding" but I'm not going to call them athletes.
StanTheCaddy - 14 years ago
There is nothing more mentally demanding in sports than being in contention to win on the back nine of a major.
Mark - 14 years ago
You people are ridiculous. The definition of athlete is: "a participant in a sport, exercise, or game requiring physical skill." (dictionary.com)
Every sport just requires a different skill set. Football requires speed and strength and quickness (or for a kicker, the ability to kick a ball really far). Basketball requires speed and jumping ability (or height and strength for Shaq). Baseball requires hand-eye coordination and speed (or for a pitcher, the ability to throw a ball really hard). Golf requires flexibility and hand-eye coordination and tempo.
So granted, football and basketball require a larger physical skill set than golf or baseball, but golf most definitely still requires physical skills. Anyone who claims that isn't true has never picked up a club.
Art - 14 years ago
While Tiger is very fit, golfers categorically are not athletes. John Daly, Craig Stadler...pro golfers, yes. Athletes, no. Anyone remember Casey Martin? Forget performance enhancing drugs, Casey was allowed to drive around in a cart to allow him to compete.
So NO, golfers are not athletes...and while we're at it neither are NASCAR drivers, poker players, pool sharks, or bowlers.
PBombz - 14 years ago
Golfers call themselves "athletes" to make them feel better about their enlarged prostate and balding head.
bth - 14 years ago
Athletes may be golfers and golfers may be athletes, but golf is not an athletic event. Walking 18 holes and swinging a club does not an athlete make.
The 50% that didn't call golf a sport, either don't play the game or haven't watched the sport at a very high level. You can't hit the ball over 280 yards if you aren't very athletic. I can promise you everyone in the top 10 in the world at golf could have excelled at another sport; most elite golfers are very competitive in other sports.
Jack - 14 years ago
The IOC has implemented golf as an Olympic sport. The holy grail of athletics. I'm pretty sure they had a few conversations about the validity of golf as a sport and did their research. Case Closed again
matt - 14 years ago
struggle with this one ... golf requires great skill, some stamina and mental toughness and focus ... but golfers can smoke while doing it and be completely out of shape and still score well and win tournaments. i don't consider bowlers athletes for the same reasons. and yet golf is going to be an Olympic sport. i say no, golf not a sport, golfers not athletes. athletes can play golf, but just playing golf doesn't mean you are an athlete.
brett m. - 14 years ago
This is the definition of a sport, straight from dictionary.com:
An athletic activity requiring skill or physical prowess and often of a competitive nature, as racing, baseball, tennis, golf, bowling, wrestling, boxing, hunting, fishing, etc.
Enough said. Case closed.
Steve - 14 years ago
Walking doesn't make golfers athletes. People need to get off of that theory. What makes them athletes is four days of five hour competition, where one bad swing can cost you the entire tournament. No other sport has that kind of constant pressure. If Jeter strikes out once, no big deal. If Kobe misses a shot, no big deal. If Peyton throws a pick, no big deal. If Tiger puts a ball in the water and puts up an 8, it's over. That pressure is what makes golf a sport.
Justin - 14 years ago
And Jimmy is right. Golf takes skill. Just like CC has throwing skills, Shaq has.....well, he can dunk....largeness skills and Ben has throwing skills. Not to mention they all have high specific sport IQ's.
BC - 14 years ago
If walking makes you an athlete than I could say that I'm an athlete because I walk all day long at my job - but that would be the weakest of arguements. From the fat guys I see play golf (including many on the PGA tour) - no way they are athletes - see John Daly, Phil Mickelson, many others.
Marko - 14 years ago
Of course golf is a sport and golfers are athletes. Just as much as pitchers in baseball or field goal kickers in football are. If you are going to say golfers aren't athletes because of John Daly (who just lost 80 pounds by the way), then baseball players aren't athletes because of David Wells. Just because it doesn't require speed or jumping abilities doesn't mean it doesn't require athleticism. Hand-eye coordination and maximizing club head speed are just as athletic as throwing a baseball or kicking a football.
Justin - 14 years ago
Jimmy states that you don't have to be an athlete to play golf and that makes golf not a sport. By that logic, baseball, football and basketball are not sports. You telling me that every player on baseball, football and basketball teams are atheletes? Let's set-up a decathalon competition and I'd put my money on Tiger to beat your boy CC Sabathia, Shaq, and Ben Roethlisberger. The list of non-athletes in those sports could get pretty long.
Athletes - 14 years ago
So giving full concentration to your driving makes you an athlete? I've driven cross country... I should be in the Olympics.
Dave Kaye - 14 years ago
Golf is a sport, because being stronger and fitter makes you better than you would be if you weren't strong and fit. That isn't to say that unathletic people can't play, and a beast would be good player. What I am saying is that if you make a good golfer stronger then they will be a better golfer. Just because it relies heavily on technique doesn't mean it's not a sport. Everyonne who's played sports has come across competition who were bigger and stronger than them and thought they were going to get whooped, because it's understood that if they are as technically strong as you, whatever the competition, you're toast. Tiger was going to be an historic golfer anyway, but anyone who follows golf can see how Tour players have changed since Tiger got ripped. Being stronger makes you better. Sport.
Stevesg - 14 years ago
Golf is a sport. It is the only sport that you "propel" a ball at rest. You're not moving forward in a kicking motion, or winding up into the ball, or even stepping into the ball. You are just standing still, and somehow twist your whole body like a pretzel to send the object your desired distance. It's an athletic move. What's more difficult: A pitcher throwing and hitting the outside corner for a strike, or from 150 yards out, drive your golf ball on the green a few feet from the cup? You don't have to "sweat" to be an athlete.
Claude - 14 years ago
It's just like someone shooting pool only the table is bigger. Figure 18 holes in about 3 hours. Each shot takes about 30 seconds to line up and shoot. If you shoot a 72 then that is only 36 minutes of the 3 hours actually concentrating and making the shot. Now, take a race car driver who spends the entire 3 hours giving full concentration to his driving. That is an athelete.
Athletes - 14 years ago
I've learned that people that either don't play golf or are bad at golf consider it a skill, probably out of frustration. Anyone who is good at golf (low single digit handicap) I'm sure considers it a sport because they know exactly how demanding and athletic you have to be to play at a high level.
Jim - 14 years ago
If you define a sport vaguely as a competition that mentally and physically challenges you, then, yes, golf is a sport. Usually, critics challenge the physical and not the mental side of the game. Well, I'd like to see those critics walk four miles a day four days in a row while hitting a golf ball, especially in the heat, and see how they hold up (and that doesn't even cover the practice rounds). Yes, the caddy carries the bag, but your hands, back and legs certainly take a beating.
As for John Daly, how well has he done? He won a few fluke majors and that's it. These days, you gotta be fit to win.
Poncho - 14 years ago
im not a fan of golf but you have to some some serious upper body strength to be swingin those clubs for 18 holes. so yes they are athletes. jimmy u cunt
Dave Freytag - 14 years ago
John Daly is a golfer...nuff' said.
G. Floyd - 14 years ago
Golf is a sport and its participants are athletes. How many times have you heard that a sport is 90% mental and 10% athletic? Golf is based precision shots that only an athlete can maintain through 72 holes. If you can't consider Tiger an athlete then how do you consider the 400 pound lineman that only serves as a wall an athlete?
Jim - 14 years ago
Sex is more of a sport than golf? Should we ask Tiger if he agree's?
David - 14 years ago
Golf is a CONTEST, not sport. Its a series of opportunites to see who can put the ball in the hole in the fewest strokes. Nothing more. Athletes play sports.
This is an easy one. Of course they are athletes. There are plenty of different types of athletes in the world. Precision and timing involve an athletic skill just as much as shooting a basketball.
although m a fan of MS but i will prefer chrome since its DOM is very resembling to IE and and in accordance to W3C but Firefox is just a mess for making trouble specially to the developers and designers..
Golf Association for an exemption to the U.Having fallen out of the top 50 in the world at the deadline, he was debating not showing up for the qualifier.Tiger Woods shot even-par 72 on Thursday during the opening round of the Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village Golf Clubs, where he was unable to birdie any of the par 5s and made just two all day.Open, only to be turned down.SINGH RELIEVED: Fiji's Vijay Singh thought he was out of luck when he asked the U.
I love golf, I love playing golf and I will be good again, I know I will.Woods has struggled on the golf course since his fourth-place finish at the Masters, and how well he is received in the coming months is something companies will monitor.It's just a process and I'm going through the process.I know I've spent the last 20 years thinking that golf was it.I'm enjoying the ride and even shooting 78 today, it at least lets me know where I'm at.You realize real quick what's important and you realize real quick that golf isn't the only thing," he said softly.
Golfers are no athletes, simple as that in my opinion.
I have to agree with those who have kept this discussion to the bare minimum basic definition. As defined, an athlete is: a person trained or gifted in exercises or contests involving physical agility, stamina, or strength; a participant in a sport, exercise, or game requiring physical skill. Does a golfer fall under this definition? Of course they do. Obviously a golfer does not need the strength that a football player needs or the stamina a marathon runner needs, but yes, to play competitively, they do need some type of physical agility, stamina, and strength.
Golf a sport? Golfers athletes? Pull your heads out of your a**es. Just because it's hard, doesn't make it a sport. Walking 18 holes a day, 4 days in a row? Are you serious? You might get an athlete playing golf, but being a great golfer doesn't make you an athlete. Can Tigress Woods do anything else other than play golf? Can that cartoon through a football, catch one? Can he dribble a basketball, shoot a 3 pointer, a finger roll layup? He makes fun of hockey? Maybe Elin can head back to Sweden and find a real man, a real athlete, like a hockey player, or stay in Florida and snag a football player. Here is how you define an athlete: Speed Power Agility Reaction Quickness. And throw in instincts and actual head-to-head competition. Does golf have any of that? Roger Federer is 10x the athlete Tiger is. He should have gotten Athlete of the Decade. If you are never moving your body, your entire body, at full speed and showing a high level of coordination, it is not a sport. People that say golf is a sport are people who only know how to play golf and are no good at anything else. Seriously, think about it.
The truth of the matter is that not all golfers are athletes: read John Daly. With this statement being true, that leads to the fact that you don't have to be athletic to play golf. However, to play golf at the level Tiger does, you must be an athlete. Tiger is a FREAK athlete that would probably be a professional athlete in another sport had he grown up playing it his whole life. Regardless of what has happened off of the links, Tiger has proven to be the Athlete of the Decade on the course.
Damn Rene, I'd say you hit the "golf ball" on the head w/ that accessment.
And you did so, without the ego and hypocriticalness of my own posts!
So there you have it people. Golf is a game. And the participants are "Players" and not athletes.
Golfers are not athletes. The very term athletics implies some fitness and golfing does not require fitness. In most sports we walk only when we are tired. In gold that is all they do. And the drive is more technique than brute strength. The perfect example of golf NOT being an athletic contest was last summer when a 59 year old almost won the British Open (I think it was). In what athletic endeavor do you ever see 59 year olds competing with 29 years at the top levels - the answer is NONE. Golf is GAME and golfers are players, not athletes.
The question is whether golfers are athletes and not if it is a sport. The answer is very obvious.....you do not need to be an athlete to play golf. To be an athlete you must be physically fit. To be a golfer you must have exceptional skill but you do not have to be anywhere near physically fit. My classic example with my buddies is when you can go out on a golf course and have a physically fit 20 year old with a five handicap go against a sixty-five year old with a four handicap and the sixty-five year old kicks the twenty year olds butt then you know that golf is about skill and not about being an athlete. If you are a golfer you know that the above example happens every single day of the week. You will never find a sixty-five year old (no matter what their skill level) competing against a twenty year old in basketball, baseball, football, soccer, swimming, etc. etc. I am not taking away the fact that to be a top golfer it requires a lot of dedication, mental training, and practice but it definitely does not require you to be an athlete. All you have to do is look at some of the top golfers...beer gut Mickleson, lazy ass Davis Love, and the old time greats like Fuzzy and the Walrus. There is nothing you can say that can make me believe that golfers are athletes....and by the way I love to play golf.
Justin,
First off, I obviously got way under your skin with my "opinion" post. Try to un-bunch your panties nerd. You're the exact person I'm talking about in my original post. Get away from the spoon fed conventional wisdom spewed by your fellow nerds and think for yourself. You know, basically be a man for once in your pathetic life.
As another enlightened person above mentioned, golf is a leisure activity. Much like lawn darts or playing pool.
Walk into a pro (or college) baseball, basketball, football or hocky locker room and ask them if golfers are real athletes. They're probably going to laugh first and then give you a wedgy. But good luck with your argument, we'll have to agree to disagree Mr. Golfer.
Justin. Good points (especially calling out Matt). Golf requires physical athletic ability (hand eye coordination, strength, flexibility). End of story.
Matt -
I love how egotistical and hypocritical you are. You are such a stud and all Americans are fat and lazy....right? Please feed us Americans another crock of shit, so that we all don't think for ourselves. Sounds like they feed you a lot of American stereotypes from whatever magical land you are from where everyone thinks for themselves.
Are golfers "athletes"?
My opinion is that some are and some aren't. Keep stereotyping here people. You can find non-athletic football players just as easily as you can golfers.
And some of you people reason that because YOU get drunk and smoke while playing golf doesn't make it a sport is ludacris. By that reasoning basketball isn't either because Ron Artest just admitted to being drunk and playing NBA games. Babe Ruth was drunk half the time he played.
Do you have to be an athlete to play golf? basketball? football? climb a mountain? - that's another debate all together.
Matt - I love your reasoning. Here is your quote: "Is golf a sport? No. It is not. Therefore, the only logical conclusion is that golfers are not "athletes" simply because they play golf.
What you are telling me is that because you say golf isn't a sport means that golfers aren't athletes. You are so wise. What makes golf not a sport? Please enlighten us oh great one.
I still haven't seen anyone on here give an intelligent definition of what an athlete is and why golfers wouldn't fall under that category.
I also, love the foreigners who hate on Tiger. Do you all have a better golfer in mind? I'd love to hear about how many majors that person has won.
Just because golf involves walking 18 holes and yes that might be far, since when did walking become a sport. Maybe if golfers were carrying their own golf bags, but they're not. If walking is tough and a sport, wouldn't those Olympic speed walking marathons be sold out and have huge ratings. Gimme a break. Golf is just a skill. It is certainly not a sport.
I would like to see a study with how many calories are burned golfing versus playing baseball. I can pretty much guarantee golf wins.
obviously, you've never palyed golf. You're an idiot if you think golf is not a sport.
I have to laugh at those who degrade golf but think that time spent out on a grass lawn scratching your privates for three + hours with the exception of possibly four brief breaks of activity is actually a sport. Take that Derek Jeter and those who think that watching two guys playing catch for four hours is exciting.
By the criteria used by many here, soccer is the only true sport and yet Americans hate it.
If you consider walking around a golf course 4 days a week to be "athletic" then you need to get your lard asses off of the couch and your fat fingers out of the potato chip bag. I think that says more about the sad state of your average American more than it does about whether or not golf is a sport. Personally I consider golf to be a leisure activity. Billiards takes plenty of physical skill but I'm not about to consider that a sport. Golf has a senior tour for cryin' out loud and god forbid if anyone in the galley makes a sound when a golfer is taking a swing. Wouldn't want any crowd noise like there is in baseball, basketball, football, hockey, etc. And name me another "sport" in which the participants can drink or smoke while playing. Every golf course I've ever been to has a beer cart careening all over the course offering every "athlete" a cold beverage if they want. Throw body checking in there or make the golfers try to hit the ball while it's moving and I might reconsider my thinking.
We are talking about two completely different subjects here. Golf is indeed a sport, which requires physical skill, i.e. hand/eye coordination, flexibility, strength, balance... Are all golfers necessarily athletes? No. I personally don’t believe that Tiger, although a tremendous athlete, should have been voted athlete of the decade. Was Tiger sportsman of the decade, absolutely, but athlete? No. In my opinion this is a ridiculous, stereotypical question, asking if golfers are athletes. Sort of like asking if you consider Caucasians good dancers. Some are, some are not. They either need to change the phrasing of the award to sportsman or give it to someone who has won the Gatorade Triathlon. Is golf a sport, yes. Are ALL golfers athletes? Common....
Let me get this straight; walking 18 holes 4 days in a row, standing still to hit a ball that is not moving makes golf a sport?! Wow, the people taking that side sound like complete nerds, and only re-emphasizes just how stupid most Americans are these days. Most Americans only follow what conventional wisdom says, and never think for themselves. That's what I think is going on here. A bunch of classroom nerds, want to consider themselves "athletes", and they love them some Tigger Woods, so of course they're going to defend him and the sport. Doesn't mean they have done any actual thinking for themselves though. They have simply been spoon fed a crock of shit and they've eaten it up.
Lets get to the point of the poll. Is golf a sport? No. It is not. Therefore, the only logical conclusion is that golfers are not "athletes" simply because they play golf. Michael Jordan played golf and he is an athlete, but he's not an athlete soley because he plays golf. Tiger may be a great athlete, but soley playing golf and being really, really good at it, does not make him an athlete.
How mentally tough does an NFL QB have to be to stand there and deliver a pass w/ Ray Lewis barrelling down on him? How mentally tough does a champion bowler have to be to roll a perfect 300? Or a pool player to make a tough shot?
I live in Colorado, and I hike 14,000 foot mountains like it's a stroll in a park. Do I consider myself an athlete? That feat alone is tougher than walking 18 holes 4 days in a row, but I don't consider myself an athlete because I hike 9-12 hours round trip in one day. But I also snowboard and I consider myself an athlete because of everything required for me to be a decent snowboarder. Conditioning, balance/coordination, strength, endurance, quick reflexes, etc. Not to mention the mental toughness to go down a mountain knowing an avalanche could hit any minute. But yeah, golfers are such extreme athletes! :sarcasm:
When you play chess the way I do you better be strong and able to hold your own if things get dicey
saying golf is a skill is true, it is a skill, but every athlete in other sports needs to be skilled to be successful
Chess doesn't require any physical talents. Golf does.
Chess is "mentally demanding" but I'm not going to call them athletes.
There is nothing more mentally demanding in sports than being in contention to win on the back nine of a major.
You people are ridiculous. The definition of athlete is: "a participant in a sport, exercise, or game requiring physical skill." (dictionary.com)
Every sport just requires a different skill set. Football requires speed and strength and quickness (or for a kicker, the ability to kick a ball really far). Basketball requires speed and jumping ability (or height and strength for Shaq). Baseball requires hand-eye coordination and speed (or for a pitcher, the ability to throw a ball really hard). Golf requires flexibility and hand-eye coordination and tempo.
So granted, football and basketball require a larger physical skill set than golf or baseball, but golf most definitely still requires physical skills. Anyone who claims that isn't true has never picked up a club.
While Tiger is very fit, golfers categorically are not athletes. John Daly, Craig Stadler...pro golfers, yes. Athletes, no. Anyone remember Casey Martin? Forget performance enhancing drugs, Casey was allowed to drive around in a cart to allow him to compete.
So NO, golfers are not athletes...and while we're at it neither are NASCAR drivers, poker players, pool sharks, or bowlers.
Golfers call themselves "athletes" to make them feel better about their enlarged prostate and balding head.
Athletes may be golfers and golfers may be athletes, but golf is not an athletic event. Walking 18 holes and swinging a club does not an athlete make.
The 50% that didn't call golf a sport, either don't play the game or haven't watched the sport at a very high level. You can't hit the ball over 280 yards if you aren't very athletic. I can promise you everyone in the top 10 in the world at golf could have excelled at another sport; most elite golfers are very competitive in other sports.
The IOC has implemented golf as an Olympic sport. The holy grail of athletics. I'm pretty sure they had a few conversations about the validity of golf as a sport and did their research. Case Closed again
struggle with this one ... golf requires great skill, some stamina and mental toughness and focus ... but golfers can smoke while doing it and be completely out of shape and still score well and win tournaments. i don't consider bowlers athletes for the same reasons. and yet golf is going to be an Olympic sport. i say no, golf not a sport, golfers not athletes. athletes can play golf, but just playing golf doesn't mean you are an athlete.
This is the definition of a sport, straight from dictionary.com:
An athletic activity requiring skill or physical prowess and often of a competitive nature, as racing, baseball, tennis, golf, bowling, wrestling, boxing, hunting, fishing, etc.
Enough said. Case closed.
Walking doesn't make golfers athletes. People need to get off of that theory. What makes them athletes is four days of five hour competition, where one bad swing can cost you the entire tournament. No other sport has that kind of constant pressure. If Jeter strikes out once, no big deal. If Kobe misses a shot, no big deal. If Peyton throws a pick, no big deal. If Tiger puts a ball in the water and puts up an 8, it's over. That pressure is what makes golf a sport.
And Jimmy is right. Golf takes skill. Just like CC has throwing skills, Shaq has.....well, he can dunk....largeness skills and Ben has throwing skills. Not to mention they all have high specific sport IQ's.
If walking makes you an athlete than I could say that I'm an athlete because I walk all day long at my job - but that would be the weakest of arguements. From the fat guys I see play golf (including many on the PGA tour) - no way they are athletes - see John Daly, Phil Mickelson, many others.
Of course golf is a sport and golfers are athletes. Just as much as pitchers in baseball or field goal kickers in football are. If you are going to say golfers aren't athletes because of John Daly (who just lost 80 pounds by the way), then baseball players aren't athletes because of David Wells. Just because it doesn't require speed or jumping abilities doesn't mean it doesn't require athleticism. Hand-eye coordination and maximizing club head speed are just as athletic as throwing a baseball or kicking a football.
Jimmy states that you don't have to be an athlete to play golf and that makes golf not a sport. By that logic, baseball, football and basketball are not sports. You telling me that every player on baseball, football and basketball teams are atheletes? Let's set-up a decathalon competition and I'd put my money on Tiger to beat your boy CC Sabathia, Shaq, and Ben Roethlisberger. The list of non-athletes in those sports could get pretty long.
So giving full concentration to your driving makes you an athlete? I've driven cross country... I should be in the Olympics.
Golf is a sport, because being stronger and fitter makes you better than you would be if you weren't strong and fit. That isn't to say that unathletic people can't play, and a beast would be good player. What I am saying is that if you make a good golfer stronger then they will be a better golfer. Just because it relies heavily on technique doesn't mean it's not a sport. Everyonne who's played sports has come across competition who were bigger and stronger than them and thought they were going to get whooped, because it's understood that if they are as technically strong as you, whatever the competition, you're toast. Tiger was going to be an historic golfer anyway, but anyone who follows golf can see how Tour players have changed since Tiger got ripped. Being stronger makes you better. Sport.
Golf is a sport. It is the only sport that you "propel" a ball at rest. You're not moving forward in a kicking motion, or winding up into the ball, or even stepping into the ball. You are just standing still, and somehow twist your whole body like a pretzel to send the object your desired distance. It's an athletic move. What's more difficult: A pitcher throwing and hitting the outside corner for a strike, or from 150 yards out, drive your golf ball on the green a few feet from the cup? You don't have to "sweat" to be an athlete.
It's just like someone shooting pool only the table is bigger. Figure 18 holes in about 3 hours. Each shot takes about 30 seconds to line up and shoot. If you shoot a 72 then that is only 36 minutes of the 3 hours actually concentrating and making the shot. Now, take a race car driver who spends the entire 3 hours giving full concentration to his driving. That is an athelete.
I've learned that people that either don't play golf or are bad at golf consider it a skill, probably out of frustration. Anyone who is good at golf (low single digit handicap) I'm sure considers it a sport because they know exactly how demanding and athletic you have to be to play at a high level.
If you define a sport vaguely as a competition that mentally and physically challenges you, then, yes, golf is a sport. Usually, critics challenge the physical and not the mental side of the game. Well, I'd like to see those critics walk four miles a day four days in a row while hitting a golf ball, especially in the heat, and see how they hold up (and that doesn't even cover the practice rounds). Yes, the caddy carries the bag, but your hands, back and legs certainly take a beating.
As for John Daly, how well has he done? He won a few fluke majors and that's it. These days, you gotta be fit to win.
im not a fan of golf but you have to some some serious upper body strength to be swingin those clubs for 18 holes. so yes they are athletes. jimmy u cunt
John Daly is a golfer...nuff' said.
Golf is a sport and its participants are athletes. How many times have you heard that a sport is 90% mental and 10% athletic? Golf is based precision shots that only an athlete can maintain through 72 holes. If you can't consider Tiger an athlete then how do you consider the 400 pound lineman that only serves as a wall an athlete?
Sex is more of a sport than golf? Should we ask Tiger if he agree's?
Golf is a CONTEST, not sport. Its a series of opportunites to see who can put the ball in the hole in the fewest strokes. Nothing more. Athletes play sports.