Golf should be kicked out of Olympics

[Golfingdad]

1 hour ago, Aguirre said:

Are you guys aware of skeleton? It's the crazy winter olympic sport where guys go down the bobsled tracks headfirst on a sled. A few years ago, I heard that the estimated amount of people who actually do this to be ~200 in the entire world. That's the ultimate niche sport. 

All of the sliding sports, for that matter.  Ski jumping as well.  Heck, pretty much the entirety of the Winter Olympics are sports for rich people.

[WUTiger]

7 hours ago, rkim291968 said:

... For me, golf just does not have the numbers to be in the Olympics.   Top stars avoiding the event also speaks volumes. ...

Golf belongs in the Olympics - but let's go old school and have amateurs represent their nations.

Big-name pro golfers have plenty of events to play in, especially during the Olympics. In the Olympics year, the US Open, Scottish and The (British) Open championships all get jammed together to free up TV air time in late July for the Olympics.

The US Senior Open gets a few more club pros and hot amateurs in Olympics year because some of the top players are off preparing for The (British) Open.

Playing in the Olympics would be one of the most cherished events in an amateur's golf career. But for a top pro, it's just another appearance responsibility they have to work into an already busy year. For the world Top 150 pro golfers, the Olympics probably ranks between a Monday pro-am and the Barbasol Championship in attractiveness. (No offense to Auburn, AL, but the BC is not a tourney that the top pros base their seasons around).

Also, the Olympics events likely will mimic the President's Cup and Ryder Cup and women's Soldheim Cup pro events. Let's have the amateurs carry the day for something similar to the Walker Cup and Curtis Cup.

To make it really interesting, let's put in a MidAmateur-type restriction: that all players have to be at least 25 years old - this means current collegians couldn't play. 

[Buckeyebowman]

If you're going to keep golf out of the Olympics, how about kicking out basketball. Golf is, at least, as universal a game as that! I've been wondering for years why golf was being kept out! OK, maybe the current format doesn't work. It's their first shot at it in a while. In another thread I suggested several ways the IOC could work with golf's ruling bodies world wide, in order to make one more acceptable.

[Aguirre]

2 minutes ago, Buckeyebowman said:

Golf is, at least, as universal a game as that!

No it isn't. Not even close.

[Gunther]

3 minutes ago, Buckeyebowman said:

If you're going to keep golf out of the Olympics, how about kicking out basketball. Golf is, at least, as universal a game as that! I've been wondering for years why golf was being kept out! OK, maybe the current format doesn't work. It's their first shot at it in a while. In another thread I suggested several ways the IOC could work with golf's ruling bodies world wide, in order to make one more acceptable.

Never heard about body parts washing up on the basketball court.  

[Golfingdad]

2 hours ago, Gunther said:

Never heard about body parts washing up on the basketball court.  

Guess you never watched a Pistons game in the late 80's? ;)

[rkim291968]

55% of votes so far are "no" or "don't care" ones.  Considering that  vast majority of voters here are ardent golfers, I am surprised that only 45% are saying "yes."    

 

It's too early to tell if golf will be a regular fixture at the Olympics.   But if baseball was any indication, I can see golf making a few appearances before it is gone from the Olympics for another 100 years.   

[Braivo]

Think about this from a TV perspective. The Olympics coverage is very fast paced, they like to show action and interesting and exciting finishes. A 72 hole format for golf is not going to get much, if any, primetime coverage. The general public simply doesn't have the attention span. They would have done better to have a team format with match play somehow. This would make for the dramatic finishes necessary to capture a wider audience. 

[Groucho Valentine]

12 hours ago, natureboy said:

I wonder with a little drama / buzz from the women's side of the game over a few Olympiads if the men's tours will start to take it more seriously.

They have to open up space in the schedule for that to happen though. If they don't want to maybe just amateurs for the men.

The Olympics is going to be the biggest prize in the history of women's golf. So they'll have their buzz definitely.  But I don't think it will motivate the top male players.  So maybe having it amateur only for the men is the best way to go. 

[Shindig]

14 hours ago, Aguirre said:

BTW, I'm pretty sure wrestling is in the 2016 Olympics. It was only temporarily eliminated in some sort of bizarre procedural move that only the IOC would think makes sense.

Yeah, classic wrestling.  I still maintain that professional-style wrestling should be an olympic sport.  But I'm a little off topic at this point...

[Piz]

Wouldn't a long driving event be more in keeping with the spirit of the Olympic games?  It would be much easier to produce, of greater interest to the non-golfing public, and conceptually similar to track and field staples such as the discus, javelin, and hammer throw.  It would also help to dispel the myth that golf is not athletic.  

[natureboy]

3 hours ago, Piz said:

Wouldn't a long driving event be more in keeping with the spirit of the Olympic games?  It would be much easier to produce, of greater interest to the non-golfing public, and conceptually similar to track and field staples such as the discus, javelin, and hammer throw.  It would also help to dispel the myth that golf is not athletic.  

Interesting idea. Is the essence of golf more like javelin or archery?

Personally I think modern javelin has gotten away from its fundamental athletic roots where the point was accuracy at a distance & hitting a target. So IMO they really ought to have moving targets out there (inanimate ) or at least a total distance minus lateral deviation from an aiming line, which is kind of what the sport of golf seems to embody.

[WUTiger]

9 hours ago, Braivo said:

Think about this from a TV perspective. The Olympics coverage is very fast paced, they like to show action and interesting and exciting finishes. A 72 hole format for golf is not going to get much, if any, primetime coverage. ... 

I like the idea of match play. Regional qualifying as per World Cup futbol, then the top 128 male and female golfers have a 36-hole medal play qualifier to determine the final 64. Then, do match play.

The US Amateur Championships (men's and women's) use this format.

You would have both an individual and a team champion. A nation would score points for having a player reach the round of 128 (medal), and more points as they advance.

As for coverage, have ESPN and The Golf Channel (TGC) do spot coverage of the regionals, and then the global Round of 128. After that, people can tap into TGC for the match-play rounds.

AS a goodwill gesture, the Television gurus might arrange for TGC feeds to be free, to promote good will and "grow the game."

Quite seriously, would any of you fellow TSTers be interested in working up a 2020 Olympic golf game plan to present to Olympic officials? 

[shanksalot]

On 6/30/2016 at 11:34 AM, caniac6 said:

Rio should be kicked out of the Olympics.

That was also my opinion. No way should it be down there this year although I guess it was too late once the Committee had committed to Rio. Hind sight is always 20/20.

[Aguirre]

54 minutes ago, WUTiger said:

I like the idea of match play. Regional qualifying as per World Cup futbol, then the top 128 male and female golfers have a 36-hole medal play qualifier to determine the final 64. Then, do match play.

The US Amateur Championships (men's and women's) use this format.

You would have both an individual and a team champion. A nation would score points for having a player reach the round of 128 (medal), and more points as they advance.

As for coverage, have ESPN and The Golf Channel (TGC) do spot coverage of the regionals, and then the global Round of 128. After that, people can tap into TGC for the match-play rounds.

AS a goodwill gesture, the Television gurus might arrange for TGC feeds to be free, to promote good will and "grow the game."

Quite seriously, would any of you fellow TSTers be interested in working up a 2020 Olympic golf game plan to present to Olympic officials? 

They're reluctant to play four rounds and you want to potentially make it eight plus regional qualifying?  

Regional qualifying isn't really even relevant because this is the Olympics and is therefore supposed to be representative of many nations. 

Edited July 1, 2016 by Aguirre

[Osnola]

Golf does not belong in the Olympics.  Neither does tennis or some of the most recent add ons like baseball.  Get back to the track and field, gymnastics, and swimming and pare it down.  Some of the medals are worthless.  Basketball was better when it was amateurs.  Should it be a big deal that Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley won Olympic gold...No!!!!

[Papa Steve 55]

I was a didn't care vote, which is my attitude about the Olympics in general. Its a shame no one in the US will ever have the nationally shared  feeling of the US hockey's win in Lake Placid NY again.

Level the playing field and bring back amateurs.

[Golfingdad]

23 minutes ago, Osnola said:

Golf does not belong in the Olympics.  Neither does tennis or some of the most recent add ons like baseball.  Get back to the track and field, gymnastics, and swimming and pare it down.  Some of the medals are worthless.  Basketball was better when it was amateurs.  Should it be a big deal that Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley won Olympic gold...No!!!!

Baseball isn't a recent add-on.  It was a consecutive event from 1992 through 2008.  However, it was dumped (along with softball) for 2012 and 2016.  Looks like they're trying to get it reinstated for 2020, though.

The problem with baseball and softball are that they aren't international enough.  Of the 15 medals awarded, 13 of them were won by only 4 countries.  (Cuba, Japan, Korea, USA)  Softball was an event from 1996-2008 and of those 12 medals, 11 of them were won by 3 countries. (Australia, Japan, US)

Golf is a lot more international than either of those sports, or basketball.