Is Golf a Sport or a Game?

[golfgirl5564]

http://www.twopeasinabucket.com/mb.asp?cmd=display&forum;_id=15&thread;_id=3174052

Apparently, golf isn't a sport.

[Mobey]

I don't even know how to reply to people who think that. If golf isn't a sport then im not good at ANY sports. It's all I have to brag to my buddies about. :-D seriously people can believe what they want I guess. I figure it has key aspects tha define it as a sport for me. 1)exercise 2) competition 3) it takes practice to even be average

[Kapanda]

Cooking can fit that description. Dancing.

In fact, there are plenty of things that can fit that category.

And in light of that thread, Look at those tubalards playing on tour??

I'm not convinced it's a sport yet.

[Kapanda]

Plus, the exercise in golf is so minimal, not even sure it should count as exercise.

Unless you're the sort of person that says you exercise a lot, since you walk 30 mins to the office every day.

[Infamous 273]

april is kinda cute.  it looks like she has kids, so you know she puts out.

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jk

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here is Tyreke Evans swinging a golf club.  He's a well above average NBA player with tons of athleticism.

[turtleback]

Originally Posted by golfgirl5564

http://www.twopeasinabucket.com/mb.asp?cmd=display&forum;_id=15&thread;_id=3174052

Apparently, golf isn't a sport.

They report the scores on the sports page.  That is good enough for me.

[iacas]

Several threads merged, and a new poll started. Make sure you vote!

[allin]

Games can be played sitting down. Seriously if physical fitness is the primary factor then many Olympic events are questionable: Curling, archery, come to mind. Some people seek to denigrate certain sports to puff up their preferred sports. Good golf requires strength, flexibility, eye hand coordination, rhythm, creative thinking under the pressure of competition. My youthful competition as 400 / 800 meter runner required a different mix of skills and abilities, but to say one is a sport and the other is not borders on the ridiculous.

[JerryTimes]

It's a sport.  If you play a 'game' that takes physical skill (bowling, golf, billiards) to play, I call that a sport.  It's more of a sport that NASCAR.  While Nascar needs physical skill, your body doesn't propel that car, so I don't look at that as a sport.  You can be fat and play baseball, that's still a sport.

[colin007]

not a sport.  its an activity.

same category at horseshoes and shuffleboard and croquet and lawn darts.  ultimate frisbee is more of a sport than golf.

that being said, golf is awesome and i love it.

[Mr3Wiggle]

I'd say anything I can do while drinking a beer and smoking a cigar is not a sport.

[Golfingdad]

My friends and I always debate the "rules" that make something a sport or not.  There are two that we have agreed upon:

1.  It must have objective scoring.  (Gymnastics, Figure Skating, and even boxing when it comes to a decision, are not sports ... just performances)

2.  Your legs must be moving.  (Darts and billiards fall into the "games" category per this rule, but bowling makes it as a sport even if you can drink beer while you do it)

This leaves golf in a somewhat gray area since they argue that they mean you must be running or walking, while I explain to them that your legs move plenty.

Anyways, I vote yes, it's a sport.

Rule 3 hasn't been defined precisely yet, but it would be something along the lines of "the athlete must be human."  That would rule out horse racing and auto racing because in those activities the "athlete" is the horse or the car.

By the way, if you are a diehard gymnast or auto racer don't take me too seriously here, we are just having fun.

[iacas]

I still say it's a sport. You can't play it well unless you can swing a club pretty darn fast AND control where it's pointing and where it hits the ball incredibly precisely.

The jokes about "drinking beer" don't apply. I know plenty of "beer" hockey leagues, or "beer touch football" leagues. The fact of the matter is that at the top levels, neither golfers nor football players drink beer during their sport, and at the lower levels, who cares?

Personally I apply the "porn" type of language to this sort of stuff: I know a sport when I see it. Golf is a sport. Auto racing isn't. Horse racing is… for the horses.

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BTW, Dave says it's a sport too. His definition of a sport: if women can do it as well as men, it's not a sport. Think about it. ;)

[x129]

I bet 5 bucks that you can't hit a golf ball while smoking a cigar and drinking a beer. No way you can pivot without spilling your drink.   If you do it in between shots, then baseball isn't a sport either. Go look back when the old timers used to smoke in the dugout and take sips from their flasks.

If there is an athletic component and a winner and loser, it is a sport.  Of course by this definition Jeopordy is a sport (pressing the button is more important than knowing crap). Different sports test different athletic components.

Originally Posted by Mr3Wiggle

I'd say anything I can do while drinking a beer and smoking a cigar is not a sport.

[Golfingdad]

Originally Posted by x129

I bet 5 bucks that you can't hit a golf ball while smoking a cigar and drinking a beer. No way you can pivot without spilling your drink.   If you do it in between shots, then baseball isn't a sport either. Go look back when the old timers used to smoke in the dugout and take sips from their flasks.

If there is an athletic component and a winner and loser, it is a sport.  Of course by this definition Jeopordy is a sport (pressing the button is more important than knowing crap). Different sports test different athletic components.

Or read about the 2011 Boston Red Sox.  It still happens apparently.

[Gresh24]

It's tough for me to consider it a sport when athleticism has little or nothing to do with success.  I guess technically it is a sport, but one I don't have a lot of respect for as it relates to others.

[iacas]

Originally Posted by Gresh24

It's tough for me to consider it a sport when athleticism has little or nothing to do with success.

Uhm, then how the heck do you define "athleticism"? Because from where I'm sitting, athleticism has a huge part in the success.

Every "sport" has its fat guys. Charles Barkley. John Daly. Cecil Fielder. Any lineman. Tim Thomas.

I'm curious, btw, how this breaks down by handicap. I doubt many low single digit handicappers would call golf anything but a sport, and I bet most of the people saying "not a sport" have higher handicaps. They don't really understand how far removed they are from the upper levels of the game. I could be wrong, but that's just a thought.

[Kapanda]

It's not technically a sport, by the mere fact that what constitutes a sport is generally ambiguous. It just has so little of the elements that constitute a sport that it is hard to really call it a sport.

And by the way, NASCAR is demanding on the body, so it's definitely more of a sport than Golf (though less than Formula 1).