Most Skilled Sport...

[DDBowdoin]

My fellow coworkers and I were having a heated debate at lunch around this tricky topic.

I said golf, but a majority of people I know (non golfers obviously) do not feel golf is a sport. SO besides golf, because that is the obvious answer, what is the most technically skilled sport in the world.

My vote goes to hockey... skating is an intense skill at an elite level, combine that skill alone with the fact that you must be physical, be able to shoot, pass, have amazing vision and foresight, culminates into a number of high intensity skills all happening in a relatively short span of time.

I think that hitting a baseball at MLB speeds is the single most difficult activity in sports but its a singular skill only. You can be overweight in baseball and still be a star, Ortiz and Fielder and good examples. Baseball players can also be specialists and its ok if you falter in some areas.

Beyond 4th line NHL'ers hockey players are expected to excel in all aspects of the game - offensive zone, neutral zone, and defensively. Pitchers pitch and first baseman only play first base but defensemen score and forwards play great defense and at times they all play goalie.

[klaymon]

Actually, I think I basically agree with you on all counts. Being a golfer (a new, not-very-good one), I can attest to the fact that any thing less than precision in all aspects of the swing will result in undesirable results. Hockey is far more "physical" than golf for sure and is highly technical in a whole-body kind of way. Tough call.

[iacas]

Actually, I think I basically agree with you on all counts. Being a golfer (a new, not-very-good one), I can attest to the fact that any thing less than precision in all aspects of the swing will result in undesirable results. Hockey is far more "physical" than golf for sure and is highly technical in a whole-body kind of way. Tough call.

I don't know. Hockey I might put up there pretty high, too, but at the same time it involves an opponent, and teammates. Golf is perhaps the only sport* with no true "opponent" and no teammates.

* Every other single-player type thing I can think of is more a "game" to me than a sport.

[DDBowdoin]

I've heard nothing but NFL... I used to lke football but I have lost complete interest over the last year for no apparent reason.

[N.V.M.]

either hockey or amateur wrestling.

[clubhousehero]

I'm gonna say hitting a baseball is the hardest thing in sports. You can teach anyone to play golf but not everyone can hit a baseball. To the op, isn't hitting a golf ball i single skill also, yea, putting and chipping are slightly different but your still hitting a ball. Plus, there are a lot of fat golfers too. I'm just trying to say that if you would have put golf one, i don't understand why you wouldn't put baseball as number 2.

To anyone that has skated for a while, which i have, its not much harder than running, it becomes second nature. so i wouldn't put hockey as my number one.

to expand the arguement, I think basketball players are the most athletic and football players are the biggest physical freaks.

[Surefire]

Not sure where they fit in, but what about sports that are not mainstream in the US?
Rugby, Cricket etc..

Also how about multi-discipline athletic events like modern pentathlon - Shooting, Fencing, Swimming, Riding and Running. Quite a mix there.

[Pat007]

Being a professional swim coach and amateur hockey player, I can definately attest that swimming is harder than golf or hockey. I see it all the time with the new kids, it takes years and years of hard work to master, kind of like golf. That being said, a golfer could not play for a week or a month and still go out and post a pretty decent number in relation to his handicap. If a swimmer takes a week off, even a month off, his best times are far out of reach.
Swimming is also more of a total body workout as well, as well as working all of the body's energy systems with no impact on joints and bones.

Just my 0.02$

[Lemay427]

Taking golf out of the question, I think ice hockey is the hardest sport.

[Borf]

Hockey is by far the hardest sport. It takes so much coordination to play the game.

So many skills are involved, you just cant process the game fast enough while playing it seems.

[cigarnut81]

The most skilled sport is picking up women. You only get one chance. Falter and you are blacklisted forever.

[Grndslmhttr3]

I don't think there is a definite "most skill-demanding sport," as that is an extremely subjective term. I could say golf requires more skill, but someone might say basketball does. Each sport is unique in the sense that they each require a different skill that I might be great at, but someone else may lack that skill entirely. Some sports require mental toughness, while others require physical toughness. I play baseball, golf, tennis, and football, amongst other sports (though tennis and football are just recreational), and although I can say that some are easier for me than others, I cannot justify saying that one requires more skill . If you don't really have any athletic ability whatsoever, I think you're going to have a rough time excelling in any of those sports; and of course, there's the other end of the spectrum where if you have temendous athletic ability, you may think that they're all equally easy. Although you may be good at one sport and bad at another, I don't believe for a second that one sport requires more skill than another.

[geezer]

Hurling is the most skilled sport in the world and, imo, anyone who disagrees has never seen a game.

[DDBowdoin]

Ive seen an all ireland at croke park... its a pretty intense game but there are aspects I dont like

you cant really hit people, you can shoulder but cant extend the arms and you arent allowed to slash the handle part of the hurley when behind someone

[liftkitfan]

My vote goes for the Decathalon or Idarode (did I spell that right?)

[907golfer12]

My vote goes for the Decathalon or Idarode (did I spell that right?)

Iditarod, close but no cigar.

[geezer]

Ive seen an all ireland at croke park... its a pretty intense game but there are aspects I dont like

As you would expect from a game that involves high speed, wooden sticks, agressive men and no body armour. If hurlers were given similar rules to say hockey there would be a ginormous injury list in every single game.

I think the fact that there is less physical contact than hockey, say, makes it a better game (just to point out, before anyone who hasn't seen hurling begins thinking its a *****s game, it is not. Not even close.).

[microcrayfish]

If you count motor racing as a sport, which I know many people don't, you could make a case for formula 1. There's insane amounts of skill involved to drive one of those cars at that level and the G-force that those guys have to deal with constantly makes it just as physically draining as most other sports.