Quoting the article: "Speed, stamina and strength are sports signatures, but you can win at golf without having any of them." Stamina...I've said this before in another thread and I'll say it again..each hole in golf is about 4 football fields in length I'd say...and you have about 18 holes per day...that is walking roughly 70+ football fields for like 3 or 4 hours in the sun with no rest ...for the tournament, you have four rounds which is about well over 200 football fields for the whole tourney...do that every single week year in year out and see if it takes a toll on you? Strength, Speed & Power...Could you hit a golf ball as far as those pros?????? Have you seen the speed and the power that goes into the swing of a golfer??? Have you ever been to a pga even and actually see for yourself how far the ball goes??????? It's amazing how strong they are... since you guys consider football a sport...field goal kickers and punters are considered athletes also right? What about golies in hockey? why not golfers? [This message has been edited by ChenZhen (edited March 10, 2001).]
How about the long jump? Shot putting? etc...You consider those sports? There is no direct competition or defense...you score as high as you can and have no control over the other opponent's score...so you are saying Mike Powell is not an athlete? [This message has been edited by ChenZhen (edited March 10, 2001).]
I'm sorry, but it just isn't demanding physically. I can ride a horse for ten minutes and get more excercise. I HAVE played those courses and they are anything but putt-putt. Look them up. Have you ever heard of the PGA Tour Championship? I spend more time walking to and from class than I do on the golf course. I carry a book bag. Does this make it a sport?? What if I swung a stick as I did it? http://www.houstonian.com/golf/index.htm http://www.redstonecompanies.com/golf/golf.htm http://www.blackhorsegolfclub.com/ ------------------ Poopy! [This message has been edited by Ali Cat (edited March 10, 2001).]
Athletes can be golfers, but golfers can not be athletes. ------------------ "Rarely is the question asked: Is our children learning how to put food on their family while being put to death." -Anti-President Bush
go to yahoo.com and you should find a longer list than that to make it a little more convincing ------------------
Werent you the one who at first thought these were putt-putt courses. Perhaps you should have gone to yahoo.com yourself first. I mean it is almost as if YOU'VE never played golf before. Either that or you're not from Houston, because any respectable golfer in Houston at least knows about Champions golf course. So what golf courses do you play?? Be sure you look them up first to make sure they're not putt-putt Anywho, nobody is arguing that golf isnt physically or mentally demanding. The argument is just that those qualities doesnt make something a sport or someone an athlete. Otherwise, gardening would be a sport, especially down in Houston. Did you know that in both the Royal Academy and the USGA "rules book" nowhere does it say that you have to walk the courses? Technically, it is perfectly legal and within the framework of the game to ride a cart. These are some of the reasons I consider golf not a sport, but a GAME, and golfers not athletes, but PLAYERS. ------------------
ChenZhen: Who cares if golfers walk the length of 70 football fields, that doesn't make them athletes. I'm not an athlete just because I go out and walk four miles over the course of three to four hours. Walking 18 holes is not hard, I could do it without training. ------------------ [This message has been edited by Steve_Francis_rules (edited March 10, 2001).]
Thank you, I rest my case ------------------ "Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored."- (Aldous Huxley)
You are totally missing my point...I'm not saying golfers are athletes primarily because they walk that far and that long...of course anybody can do that without getting too tired...my point is to prove the article wrong, that stamina and endurance DOES effect your golf game, but not as obvious as other sports though... I'll put it to the extreme to prove my point for people who have not played golf...I've said this in the casey martin argument months back... tee up a baseball from the endzone of a football field...now hit it to the opposite endzone...doing it as acurrately as you can over there with decent effort...casually walk over there to the opposite endzone...now hit it back...do that 70 more times for 3 or 4 hours...now on the last attempt take note of how you feel now and how you feel when you first hit it and now try to hit it as accurate as you can...you think you're gonna feel the difference? Imagine golfers have alot of stress also in dealing with the wind, the sun, and the trying to hit it as perfect as possible on every single shot putting a tiny ball on a tiny hole far away...the curves in the putting greens, the trees, the deep sand, water, etc.....will this take a toll on you mentally & physically? ------------------
I was being sarcastic about that putt-putt comment dude, I knew they were real golf courses. I've heard of them before, I'm just implying she may have looked it up or heard of it and have never laid her hands on a golf club...I just can't stand people who have to make up something, taking advantage of them being anonymous on the net...even though they havn't experienced it themselves to prove a point...that's all I normally play at Sharpstown and Bear Creek...I suck at it and get worst and worst the more I play read the artical again...it's saying it takes no stamina, speed and strength to play the game...saying that it's not even a sport...isn't that the backbone of your argument? JayZ, I'm assuming you've never played the game before either...try going to the driving range for a few hours and tell me if it takes some athleticm to just hit the damn ball...Like Jeff said, golf is a wussy sport, but a sport nonetheless... ------------------
Allright you jerk. I didnt make that stuff up because my father's company, Redstone, BUILT three of them and we are members at Champions. That's right we CONTROL those golf courses. I HAVE played golf before and it is NOT A SPORT. ------------------ Poopy!
Often I would agree with you, but she is my girlfriend and therefore I can backup everything she says It is funny because she doesnt care for golf too much, yet her whole family is in on it. Redstonecompanies owns the Houstonian country club/golf course and recently built Shadow Hawk off Grand Parkway (Paul Marchand, recent captain of the President's Cup, is the head pro there) and the new course at BlackHorse. Regardless, my point remains. Yes, it may be difficult to drive a golf ball if youve never done it before. But it is also difficult and physically challenging to be a gardener if youve never done it before. With practice, though, both can become achievable. And, both situations can also be related to competition (dont laugh, you now there are gardening conventions, competition and all). The only difference really is that if you PLAY golf and get good at it you can make millions of dollars because nobody really cares to watch people garden (hence no tv revenues). I just fail to call something a sport just because it is popular. You tell me, why should golfing be a sport and gardening not?? ------------------
As long as we can agree that figure skating isn't a sport, I don't care what we think about golf. I'm going to go with the idea that golf is close enough to a sport to be a sport. But figure skating (and gymnastics for that matter) is nowhere near a sport. And, for the record, I spent most of my childhood wishing I could join the Pro Gardening Tour (or PGT, as it is known to fans of the sport of gardening). Thanks for bringing up such a painful memory. ------------------ Houston Sports Board The Anti-Bud Adams Page [This message has been edited by mrpaige (edited March 12, 2001).]
Ali, I apologize for my rude comments. Didn't mean to be an a$$ and to judge you in any way without me knowing anything...it was in the heat of moment...I tried holding it back, but just couldn't...it squirted out I believe you, really...no hard feelings ya? JayZ, we are arguing about something so small and useless...lets call it a draw [This message has been edited by ChenZhen (edited March 12, 2001).]
You try hitting a golf ball 120 yards (on to the green) while standing in weeds up to your chest. ------------------ "Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored."- (Aldous Huxley)
The question becomes who is an athlete. Are all basketball players athletes (think of George Muresan), how about baseball players (think of Mickey Lolich, David Wells, Fred Galdding), how about the 380 pound offensive lineman - is he an athlete simply because he is big and strong? All professionals in the major sports as well as golf have athletic ability but that doesn't necessarily mean they are athletes. Haven't many of us seen a pitcher run the bases and know we are better baserunners? Tiger Woods may train as hard as Eddie George so in that respect, he is an athlete, but if you look at Craig Stadler, he isn't the prototypical athlete, yet he has athletic ability. Tiger Woods is an athlete regardless of his sport. ------------------
Well said bobrek ------------------ "Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored."- (Aldous Huxley)
