ESPN's Max Kellermans ignorant comments

[sirsteveo55]

http://thebiglead.com/2017/04/10/max-kellerman-golf-is-not-a-real-sport/

On Monday on ESPNs first take they are talking about how golf is not a sport. I put the link above that has the video and talks about it. 

This really infuriates me when I see people on ESPN say stuff like this. The first round of the masters was on ESPN. Then someone on ESPN representing ESPN talks about how golf is not a sport. 

Then he talks about sportsmanship and how they were congratulating each other throughout the round. That is what makes golf so much better and different from every other sport it shows how good the sportsmanship is within the sport. 

I wish they would take a golfer on the show to defend those comments.

How does everyone else feel about his comments, what can the golf community do to stop ignorant people like this on ESPN?

[jamo]

First Take is like cockfighting, only instead of shooting them full of chicken steroids they use dumb hot takes in liquid form.

[Fairway_CY]

A. Max Kellerman is about as athletic as a thong.

B. Those who can, do.  Those who can't, talk about it.  (See Smith, Steven A.)

C. I get more hyped seeing sportsmanship like what we saw Sunday (or between Reed and McIlroy at the Ryder Cup) than I do when I see something like Tiger's 9 & 8 win over Stephen Ames.

CY

[jsgolfer]

Kellerman says stupid things to get clicks, that's how he keeps his job.  He should've stuck to boxing.

[krupa]

ESPN:  We don't show sports, we show guys yelling about sports.

1.  Golf is a sport whether Yelly McShouterson wants to believe it.  He literally redefined the word to support his opinion. 

2.  I agree that golf is not a zero-sum game, but that doesn't mean the golfers are not competing against each other.

3.  There's nothing wrong with competitors in any sport acknowledging the other's achievements, good plays, great catches, etc.   Doing so only makes you a better person, sportsman (well, duh), and competitor.  Not doing so makes you a d-bag.

The guy is clearly put on TV because he's willing to yell controversial/confrontational things at a camera.  Not sure his opinion amounts to much otherwise. 

[sirsteveo55]

1 hour ago, krupa said:

 

The guy is clearly put on TV because he's willing to yell controversial/confrontational things at a camera.  Not sure his opinion amounts to much otherwise. 

I don't mind controversial topic or comments.

What bothers me the most is there is no golfer there to defend the comments and the statement is just ignorant. He could have said golf is not a sport because I have played it and.... that's why I feel like that.

[krupa]

41 minutes ago, sirsteveo55 said:

I don't mind controversial topic or comments.

What bothers me the most is there is no golfer there to defend the comments and the statement is just ignorant. He could have said golf is not a sport because I have played it and.... that's why I feel like that.

I don't mind the controversial topics either but he doesn't have to yell...

 

I would add that I don't think the "golf is [not] a sport" argument is really worth having regardless of how many people are in the room.  People draw the lines that best fit their personal biases; the argument goes in circles, neither side giving any ground, until everyone just gets tired and moves on.

I guess I'd like to see him in a room with some PGA Tour golfers just to see if he repeats his argument or if he backs down at all. 

Edited April 11, 2017 by krupa

[MrDC]

You're having a discussion about Max Kellerman, right?

Mission accomplished, it doesn't matter if what he says is ignorant, and wrong, he doesn't care, he just wants ratings and now he's getting them.

Edited April 11, 2017 by MrDC

[Shorty]

4 hours ago, sirsteveo55 said:

http://thebiglead.com/2017/04/10/max-kellerman-golf-is-not-a-real-sport/

 

Good grief!!!! I've never heard of this idiot. Is this typical of him? It would seem that he is more interested in being controversial than actually commenting with any nuance, intelligence or research.

I couldn't care less whether golf is considered a "sport" or otherwise because  people who don't think it is have never played at a competitive level and can only recognise "athleticism" in its most obvious form. I, for example, think American Football is a bit lame because of the helmets and padding and don't see it as a very tough sport compared to Rugby League or Australian Rules - but I could be persuaded to see it as something else if "The Refrigerator" tackled me.  Some people think hunting is "sport" - which is odd, given that only one team knows its involved in the game ;-).

So....it's more a question of what sport is rather than whether golf is a sport.

Edited April 11, 2017 by Shorty

[iacas]

16 minutes ago, MrDC said:

You're having a discussion about Max Kellerman, right?

Mission accomplished, it doesn't matter if what he says is ignorant, and wrong, he doesn't care, he just wants ratings and now he's getting them.

Same was true of a guy named John C. Dvorak back in the Mac vs. PC days.

Clickbait. Trollbait. Whatever.

[Golfingdad]

2 hours ago, sirsteveo55 said:

What bothers me the most is there is no golfer there to defend the comments and the statement is just ignorant.

I don't think that you can call somebody's opinion on whether or not golf is a sport ignorant or wrong, because it's just an opinion and there really is no concrete definition for what is and what isn't a sport.

Everybody draws their line on what the definition of a sport is in a slightly different place and golf is one of those activities , along with bowling, auto racing, horse racing, curling perhaps, that falls in the big grey area in the middle.

A lot of people don't think golf is a sport, and I won't argue with them.  Partly because they can't be wrong, but mostly because I just have no reason to care.

[Moppy]

ESPN has become all politics all the time. It's almost worse than Twitter in that regard. There is probably a political agenda behind the comment. I couldn't say because I haven't watched ESPN in quite a while. I used to love it. Thanks to God we have the NFL network, MLB, NHL network, and of course, The Golf Channel now.

[jamo]

12 minutes ago, Golfingdad said:

I don't think that you can call somebody's opinion on whether or not golf is a sport ignorant or wrong, because it's just an opinion and there really is no concrete definition for what is and what isn't a sport.

Everybody draws their line on what the definition of a sport is in a slightly different place and golf is one of those activities , along with bowling, auto racing, horse racing, curling perhaps, that falls in the big grey area in the middle.

A lot of people don't think golf is a sport, and I won't argue with them.  Partly because they can't be wrong, but mostly because I just have no reason to care.

Since @Golfingdad stole my auto racing example...

Frankly I couldn't care less what people do and don't call sports. If you want to call the esports people on ESPN athletes I wouldn't argue with it.

[Golfingdad]

4 hours ago, sirsteveo55 said:

Then he talks about sportsmanship and how they were congratulating each other throughout the round. That is what makes golf so much better and different from every other sport it shows how good the sportsmanship is within the sport. 

I wish they would take a golfer on the show to defend those comments.

How does everyone else feel about his comments, what can the golf community do to stop ignorant people like this on ESPN?

I watched it again and I realize based on the above that I think you misunderstood what he was saying.  (Not his aside about golf not being a sport, nothing to be misunderstood there - but he even admits that has nothing to do with his point and says it's a topic for another day)  He was defending them against whatever Stephen A. Smith said before that (that the author cut out to make his point) regarding Smith having a problem with them congratulating each other and how that somehow translates into them not wanting to win, or win badly enough.

Kellerman was defending them.

[sirsteveo55]

4 hours ago, MrDC said:

You're having a discussion about Max Kellerman, right?

Mission accomplished, it doesn't matter if what he says is ignorant, and wrong, he doesn't care, he just wants ratings and now he's getting them.

I do understand that any publicity is good publicity. I just really disagree when people make a statement and do not not say why he feels that way. I just cant see this as being positive. FirstTake has been on a downslide since skip left. I will defiantly be watching FS1 now with skip and shannon in the morning, I am done with ESPN.

3 hours ago, Moppy said:

ESPN has become all politics all the time. It's almost worse than Twitter in that regard. There is probably a political agenda behind the comment. I couldn't say because I haven't watched ESPN in quite a while. I used to love it. Thanks to God we have the NFL network, MLB, NHL network, and of course, The Golf Channel now.

I have realized this more and more as I get older and completely agree with you.

[mcanadiens]

Ah the ravages of cable tv and so much air time to fill. 

Give me a good football or hockey game. Reds baseball is fine. The talking heads are totally unwatchable in my book. 

[Hardspoon]

4 hours ago, Golfingdad said:

I don't think that you can call somebody's opinion on whether or not golf is a sport ignorant or wrong, because it's just an opinion and there really is no concrete definition for what is and what isn't a sport.

Everybody draws their line on what the definition of a sport is in a slightly different place and golf is one of those activities , along with bowling, auto racing, horse racing, curling perhaps, that falls in the big grey area in the middle.

A lot of people don't think golf is a sport, and I won't argue with them.  Partly because they can't be wrong, but mostly because I just have no reason to care.

Exactly.

I would agree that it's a weird thing for someone to say on ESPN...but whatever.

The most surprising thing about this for me is that Max Kellerman is still around.  I hadn't even heard much of him since he left Around The Horn (maybe 10 years ago?) 

[Buckeyebowman]

4 hours ago, Shorty said:

Good grief!!!! I've never heard of this idiot. Is this typical of him? It would seem that he is more interested in being controversial than actually commenting with any nuance, intelligence or research.

I couldn't care less whether golf is considered a "sport" or otherwise because  people who don't think it is have never played at a competitive level and can only recognise "athleticism" in its most obvious form. I, for example, think American Football is a bit lame because of the helmets and padding and don't see it as a very tough sport compared to Rugby League or Australian Rules - but I could be persuaded to see it as something else if "The Refrigerator" tackled me.  Some people think hunting is "sport" - which is odd, given that only one team knows its involved in the game ;-).

So....it's more a question of what sport is rather than whether golf is a sport.

At one time the word "sport" was reserved exclusively for hunting, fishing, riding to hounds, fox chasing, falconry, driving a four in hand, etc. All else were merely games, Whether tennis, bowling, running, jumping, football of any description, cricket, rugby, basketball, baseball, hockey, golf. All of those are games.

That's why they are called the Games of the Olympiad and not the Sports of the Olympiad. We've simply changed the terminology.

What can the OP do to silence Max Kellerman? Nothing. The best thing you can do is ignore him! If enough people do that, he will no longer have a job! I'd also like to see Kellerman walk 18 at Chambers Bay 4 or 5 days in a row and see what kind of shape he's in at the end of it!

And if you think only one team is "involved " in hunting, it's amazing how fast the other team catches on! Their very survival depends upon it!