Golf an Olympic sport?

[twothirds]

Don't forget darts

 

[iwannabeabiker]

I would rather watch paint dry than watch golf.

I think IOC is POed at the USOC, so they've taken to two sports that are mostly US sports and deleted them from the Olympics. I understand in a way about baseball because the best players are not there. MLB won't do what NHL does and take a two week break for the Olympics. But the IOC seems to lump softball and baseball together, so softball suffers. I also think because the US DOMINATES softball is another reason they dumped it. If you think about that for their reason, then why was basketball still a sport? The US dominated that for a long time before the rest of the world caught up.

Ladyvader, I'd have to say New Zealand DOMINATES the world of softball. They have won 2 or the last 3 world champs and were beaten finalists in the last tournament.

I've said earlier that I don't believe golf should be included in the olympics, not because it isn't a sport but because I'm unsure of how the tournament is going to work. Meaning - to win a gold medal you are generally the best athlete in the event you enter, however as we know Tiger is the best golfer in the world but he doesn't win every tournament........Tennis is another sport. Did the number 1 ranked male and female player win gold at the last olympics? I cant recall who did but I'm pretty sure it wasn't Williams or Federer....

Disclaimer - I'm a golfer who recently took up cycling. Both sports have their own unique physical and mental challenges.

 

[ruamruam]

For all those who don't like golf, have a look at this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zr_wwrG3KL0

 

[fatandfast]

This is a place where the IOC can really do something good. NO PROs in golf you can tell who the is professional and who is amateur by their pay stub or tax return. Giving Woods or Goosen another title that should be for amateurs is dumb. No more pros in the Olympics. Most of the commies are gone or out of money. Yes China will be able to cheat and win more medals but we need to rethink on who should compete.

 

[aarnold517]

For those that appreciate and love the challenging game of golf, one of the longest and definitely most extreme holes in the world:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_pUUDf_55KQ&feature=pyv&ad=2912697295&kw=golf

 

[Big_Blue_Dave]

I don't necessarily think that an American will win the Olympics golf tournament. Depends on the qualification to the Olympics as to how it would be. There are many golfers from around the world that could win the event. You only have to see how global both the USPGA Tour and European PGA Tour have become with players and events.

I think the womens' event would be even more open than the mens' due to the closeness of the field in relation to the top ranked player and the 100th. But overall I can see it being a very good event and will promote golf around the world more than it is doing now.

Plus, as has been said in the thread that the best golfer may not win the event, in the Road Race and some Track Races like the Points and Madison, its not always the best cyclist that wins but the one that has the best tactics during the whole event. Odd results happen in all sports not just Golf or Tennis.

With regards to Rugby 7's, this is the best form of the game to take to the Olympics or you will have just 3 or 4 teams able to win. In 7's about 8 teams have a great chance with or 6 a fairly good chance if they can do things right. So its more open to the competitors and will result in better matches.

 

[Clythio]

Ok, why not chess, too.. or slotcars?
If don't want the small cars, why not a F-1 olympic race?
A lot of very fast reflexes needed, here!
And a F-1 driver is - has to be - a much more fit person than a golf player.
Golf, LOL...
I can imagine the emotional, the fantastic, TV covering job, the speaker crying after each stroke..

 

[Big_Blue_Dave]

Ok, why not chess, too.. or slotcars?
If don't want the small cars, why not a F-1 olympic race?
A lot of very fast reflexes needed, here!
And a F-1 driver is - has to be - a much more fit person than a golf player.
Golf, LOL...
I can imagine the emotional, the fantastic, TV covering job, the speaker crying after each stroke..

Simple answer to this one, it involves a lot of technology in F1 and the possibility of a non-level playing field with differences in car manufacturing and power. Plus the potential of mechanical failure which ends the race for a competitor is against the Olympic ideal. Yes, you can have a mechanical failure in cycling but that does not end your race completely as you can get back on a new bike or have a wheel changed.

I won't even write about chess, the game has far too checkered a past to continue.

 

[Anonymous]

Simple answer to this one, it involves a lot of technology in F1 and the possibility of a non-level playing field with differences in car manufacturing and power. Plus the potential of mechanical failure which ends the race for a competitor is against the Olympic ideal. Yes, you can have a mechanical failure in cycling but that does not end your race completely as you can get back on a new bike or have a wheel changed.

I won't even write about chess, the game has far too checkered a past to continue.

the olympic ideal went out the window as soon as they let proffessional athletes and sportsmen and women take part..

there is no olympic ideal as far as im concerned.. makes me laugh when people talk about the UCI being corrupt... they arent a patch of fifa, uefa, or the olympic commitee..

dont watch it have no intrest in in outside of the cycling track events.. even the road race i have no real intrest in.. i think it should be restricted to amateurs, or at least under 21's

 

[auscyclefan94]

There are a bunch of fat slobs playing sports like American football, Sumo wresling, boxing (all of which are unquestionably sports) and those are just the ones i can think of right now. I don't think you can use the fat argument.

Boxing you have to be very fit, american footaball involves explosive bursts of power. Don't compare golf to boxing though. that's wrong.
Define a sport?
Must haves:
Equipment
Competition with rules
Competitors
Level of Physicality

If your going on my basis then, Golf would be on the lower end of a sport. It has a very low level of physicality involved. Cheerleading i would call more of a sport than golf. it's a game.

 

[Ferminal]

I'd like to see how non-golfers feel after 72 holes, still questioning the fitness required? Golf is clearly a sport under any definition, hilarious for people to suggest otherwise (never really heard people questioning golf as a sport until this thread).

My problem is the format, it's just going to be another elite PGA Tour event, there's nothing to distinguish it from any other pro event. Golf is not a patriotic game, but at the Olympics you are representing your country, it's inclusion as a standard pro tournament violates that ideology.

It needed to be some sort of team match-play event. You could have teams, the majority of nations selected based on rankings but a couple get in through a qualifier. 4-5 days of group phase... a rest, then the semis and medal games.

It's the same with Tennis, a joke of an Olympic sport in its format. It should only ever be in the Olympics in Davis Cup format.

 

[aarnold517]

I'd like to see how non-golfers feel after 72 holes, still questioning the fitness required? Golf is clearly a sport under any definition, hilarious for people to suggest otherwise (never really heard people questioning golf as a sport until this thread).

My problem is the format, it's just going to be another elite PGA Tour event, there's nothing to distinguish it from any other pro event. Golf is not a patriotic game, but at the Olympics you are representing your country, it's inclusion as a standard pro tournament violates that ideology.

It needed to be some sort of team match-play event. You could have teams, the majority of nations selected based on rankings but a couple get in through a qualifier. 4-5 days of group phase... a rest, then the semis and medal games.

It's the same with Tennis, a joke of an Olympic sport in its format. It should only ever be in the Olympics in Davis Cup format.

+1, the format they have come up with is not very good

the thing is golf already has a world-cup that takes place every year in europe where two golfers represent each country. it seems like this format would work much better, except maybe allow some of the bigger golfing countries such as the us, australia and great britain to qualify a couple of teams of two...it would make it much more exciting than regular stroke play

 

[BroDeal]

I'd like to see how non-golfers feel after 72 holes, still questioning the fitness required? Golf is clearly a sport under any definition, hilarious for people to suggest otherwise (never really heard people questioning golf as a sport until this thread).

I would like to see how non-poker players feel after a marathon night of twelve hours of sitting in the same chair while grinding out a living by fleecing Las Vegas tourists who think they know what they are doing because they played poker on the Internet. It is hilarious that people don't consider poker a sport. It takes years of practice and experience and dedication to hone the skills necessary to win. It is a real tragedy that poker is not in the Olympics.

Golf is walking around and occasionally--very occasionally--hitting a ball with a stick. If anyone finds that physically taxing then they might want to do more excersise than their usual, nightly bicep curls with twelve ounce cans of beer.

 

[usedtobefast]

I would like to see how non-poker players feel after a marathon night of twelve hours of sitting in the same chair while grinding out a living by fleecing Las Vegas tourists who think they know what they are doing because they played poker on the Internet. It is hilarious that people don't consider poker a sport. It takes years of practice and experience and dedication to hone the skills necessary to win. It is a real tragedy that poker is not in the Olympics.

Golf is walking around and occasionally--very occasionally--hitting a ball with a stick. If anyone finds that physically taxing then they might want to do more excersise than their usual, nightly bicep curls with twelve ounce cans of beer.

your honor, i rest my case!

 

[Rupert]

Criteria

Define a sport?
Must haves:
Equipment
Competition with rules
Competitors
Level of Physicality

Why do you need "equipment" to be a sport? Martial arts don't need equipment unless you count clothing or some level of protective gear (a cup... or more).

How about adding an objective way of keeping score / determining the winner? I've heard this one before, would exclude sports where scoring is "subjective" like figure skating (avoids the proverbial "russian judge"). But that gets into the issue of what's "objective."

Personally I think synchronized swimming is pretty silly as an Olympic sport, but it's pretty hard to define criteria / where to draw a line... And there are definitely criteria other than purely "sporting" that go into Olympic criteria, in reality... Some are practical (such as not requiring new venues) and others are more financial / political.

 

[ladyvader]

I would like to see how non-poker players feel after a marathon night of twelve hours of sitting in the same chair while grinding out a living by fleecing Las Vegas tourists who think they know what they are doing because they played poker on the Internet. It is hilarious that people don't consider poker a sport. It takes years of practice and experience and dedication to hone the skills necessary to win. It is a real tragedy that poker is not in the Olympics.

Golf is walking around and occasionally--very occasionally--hitting a ball with a stick. If anyone finds that physically taxing then they might want to do more excersise than their usual, nightly bicep curls with twelve ounce cans of beer.

Poker is a game. Not a sport. There is a difference.

 

[pmcg76]

the olympic ideal went out the window as soon as they let proffessional athletes and sportsmen and women take part..

there is no olympic ideal as far as im concerned.. makes me laugh when people talk about the UCI being corrupt... they arent a patch of fifa, uefa, or the olympic commitee..

dont watch it have no intrest in in outside of the cycling track events.. even the road race i have no real intrest in.. i think it should be restricted to amateurs, or at least under 21's

I agree completely Dim, to me there are very few sports that has the Olympics as the most important event. Athletics, Rowing, maybe a few other sports, thats it. It was better when it was amateur but then its not the best athletes in the world. Any sport that the Olympics is not the pinnacle does not deserve to be in the Olympics and that includes cycling.

I think the Olympics reached their pinnacle in the 70s/80s when they were played out against the backdrop of the Cold War, since then they have been going downhill and its only the marketing corporations keeping them alive.

I personally think the Winter Olympics are far more interesting than the summer Olympics.

As for Golf being an sport, I have had many arguments with my father when a snooker player/golfer etc wins a bests sports person/personality award. I understand, they are less physical but you dont just start sedentary sports and become a world beater, it takes time and practice.

 

[BroDeal]

Poker is a game. Not a sport. There is a difference.

Precisely, which is why golf should not be in the Olympics.

 

[Ferminal]

I would like to see how non-poker players feel after a marathon night of twelve hours of sitting in the same chair while grinding out a living by fleecing Las Vegas tourists who think they know what they are doing because they played poker on the Internet. It is hilarious that people don't consider poker a sport. It takes years of practice and experience and dedication to hone the skills necessary to win. It is a real tragedy that poker is not in the Olympics.

Golf is walking around and occasionally--very occasionally--hitting a ball with a stick. If anyone finds that physically taxing then they might want to do more excersise than their usual, nightly bicep curls with twelve ounce cans of beer.

Poker is not a sport because it is based on the mind, not the body. Please don't tell me a golf ball goes where the mind tells it to. Sports are sports because there is a motor component to them, which creates a skill margin.

By these definitions, half of the events at the olympics are not sport - Diving, Half of Gymnastics, SS, Sailing, Shooting events, Equestrian, Archery, Fencing. These are not sports either, so there should be no argument that golf should no be included in the olympics "because it's not a sport".

 

[Anonymous]

Precisely, which is why golf should not be in the Olympics.

golf is like fishing.. its a hobby, a pastime....

maybe there should be a seperate hobbyist world championships..

angling, golf, needlework, and assembling flatpack...

oh and walking... what the hell sort of sport is walking...

 

[auscyclefan94]

Why do you need "equipment" to be a sport? Martial arts don't need equipment unless you count clothing or some level of protective gear (a cup... or more).

How about adding an objective way of keeping score / determining the winner? I've heard this one before, would exclude sports where scoring is "subjective" like figure skating (avoids the proverbial "russian judge"). But that gets into the issue of what's "objective."

Personally I think synchronized swimming is pretty silly as an Olympic sport, but it's pretty hard to define criteria / where to draw a line... And there are definitely criteria other than purely "sporting" that go into Olympic criteria, in reality... Some are practical (such as not requiring new venues) and others are more financial / political.

Protective gear is the equipment. If they are going to have synchronised swimming in the olympics you might as well have dancing or cheerleading in the olympics.

 

[TRDean]

As a fan of sports I think golf is a sport and can be in the olympics. I live in the US and cycling is not much of a popular sport here...there are plenty who think cycling should not be in the olympics...I won't denigrate any other sport just for that reason. I have played golf...it requires a different skill set than cycling or endurance/power sports...but it is a sport. Many polls in the US show that folks think the biathalon should be removed from the olympics...this is a sport too...just because someone does not like to watch or participate in a sport does not make it any less of a sport.

Now...if they add NASCAR to the olympics I may just have to change my mind!! LOL!!

 

[usedtobefast]

golf is like fishing.. its a hobby, a pastime....

maybe there should be a seperate hobbyist world championships..

angling, golf, needlework, and assembling flatpack...

oh and walking... what the hell sort of sport is walking...

you could have a "sport" like "style walking" like models on the runway.
also maybe add gardening and cooking....

 

[pedaling squares]

I agree completely Dim, to me there are very few sports that has the Olympics as the most important event. Athletics, Rowing, maybe a few other sports, thats it. It was better when it was amateur but then its not the best athletes in the world. Any sport that the Olympics is not the pinnacle does not deserve to be in the Olympics and that includes cycling.

I think the Olympics reached their pinnacle in the 70s/80s when they were played out against the backdrop of the Cold War, since then they have been going downhill and its only the marketing corporations keeping them alive.

I personally think the Winter Olympics are far more interesting than the summer Olympics.

As for Golf being an sport, I have had many arguments with my father when a snooker player/golfer etc wins a bests sports person/personality award. I understand, they are less physical but you dont just start sedentary sports and become a world beater, it takes time and practice.

Disagree with the first bolded section... I think sports where the Olympics are not the pinnacle of achievement are the exception rather than the rule. Sure, the few sports with top level professional leagues like soccer/football, baseball, hockey, cycling, golf, tennis etc, but those are a mere few among the hundreds of Olympic sports. I don't think the speed skating, gymnastics, or kayaking circuits bring the glory and endorsement opportunities that the athletes can obtain from Olympic success.

Agree completely with the latter bolded text. The Winter Games still have that cool factor and the fun factor, and the sports are amazing. XC skiing, speed skating, aerial skiing, all excellent on TV or live. I'm not so sure about the 2 man luge though. Yikes!

 

[ak-zaaf]

Poker is not a sport because it is based on the mind, not the body. Sports are sports because there is a motor component to them, which creates a skill margin.

Not true. Whenever I hold pocket aces I start shaking really bad.


Golf is great for the Olympics imo. Why not? All this 'Olympic ideal' bs is about 100 years late. It's a commercial sport event and golf makes loads of money so it should be in there.
The Olympics are hardly to be taken serious anyway. If the highest goal in your sport is an Olympic medal, you chose the wrong sport.

Marathon is a different story.