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Would you consider golfers athletes?


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The current pro game I would say yes.Pre Tiger Woods is questionable

 

The amateur golf game I would say no.We can't hold a candle in the wind next other amateur sports participants .Most of us use this as a pure hobby.And majority of hackers are out of shape beer drinking passing gas cart riding only players.At least 85% of your everyday golfers would collapse walking 9 holes.

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Hands down yes. Athletes are a balance of physical and mental strength. The difference between an average golfer and a professional is their mental acuity.

 

Walking 18 with your buddies is a lot different than playing 72 holes of tournament golf after two days of practice rounds and pro-am's mixed with range time; all while facing pressure of making a living.

 

Golfers are athletes. You won't change my mind.

 

 

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Imo an athlete is someone who competes. Animals such as horses and dogs that race are considered athletes. Do in the broad sense of the term yes golfers are athletes

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Yes, golfers are athletes.  

 

I don't think that comparing professionals to amateurs makes a difference.  In any sport, the professionals will look different than the amateurs.

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Some of them are. I've seen the fitness routines of Rory, DJ, Rosey and they are pretty intense to do everyday and then go out and practice for 2-hours in July and then play 18. I can workout for 1 1/2 hours or play golf, but I can't do both anymore. Granted you've got your Pat Perez's, Boo Weekly's, etc that break the trend, but the modern golfer needs to be an athlete to win consistently on tour.

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I truly believe it is 100% athletic.Its why the tens of millions of us never improve.No matter how advanced the equipment or improvements in teaching are.We all hit a plateau where our athletic abilities max out and can take us no farther

Keep it in the short stuff

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- If you can compete in a professional tournament with a broken leg, it is not a sport. Tiger Woods not only played the 2008 US Open with two stress fractures in his left tibia, he actually won the whole event.

Bob Baun scores the OT GWG in the 1964 Stanley Cup final for the Toronto Maple Leafs with a broken ankle.

 

Patrice Bergeron with the link below was a candidate for a hospital admission with a myriad of significant injuries.

 

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.yahoo.com/amphtml/sports/news/nhl--on-patrice-bergeron-and-playing-through-injury-in-stanley-cup-final--where-s-the-line--211413725.html

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Simple answer is yes

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A lot more do now then they used to. It nice seeing other athletes at the University I played at and now coach, recognizing the riggers our golfers have to go through. Especially the mental grind our men go through during tournaments with Day 1 usually being 36 holes that takes 10-11 hours.

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So you're an athlete if you play chess or cards?

 

Many tour players are athletes, but few amateurs are. Being athletic is not central to golf, but it can improve performance.

 

- Golf better matches the definition of a game than a sport.

- Golf does not require rigorous physical activity.

- If an activity does not make you break a sweat, or if it can be done while drinking and smoking, then players are not athletes.

- The fact that golf can be difficult and requires practice and skill to achieve proficiency does not mean players are athletes. Brain surgery, chess, and computer programming are difficult tasks that also require practice and mental acuity, but they are clearly not sports.

- Golf was ranked 51 out of 60 activities by a panel of sports scientists, athletes, and journalists assembled by ESPN. They ranked the athletic difficulty of 60 activities based on ten categories such as endurance, agility, and strength. The panel determined that the level of athleticism in golf ranked lower than ping pong and just ahead of roller skating.

- Athleticism does not correlate with performance when it comes to golf. The fact that golfers are able to be competitive professionally so far past the age of peak athleticism -- age 26 according to a June 2011 peer-reviewed study -- shows that golf is not a sport. For example, Tom Watson nearly won one of the biggest tournaments in professional golf, the British Open, at age 59 in 2009.

- If you can compete in a professional tournament with a broken leg, it is not a sport. Tiger Woods not only played the 2008 US Open with two stress fractures in his left tibia, he actually won the whole event.

Making a golf swing is similar to a baseball swing

Walking with a bag or pushing a bag is rigorous activity as is making 50 swings or more during a round if not walking

Softball and baseball can be done while drinking and smoking and they are athletes.

Not sure what peak athleticism has anything to do with it because we see many athletes compete well into their 40s in several sports and be competitive at those ages

 

Athleticism is relevant. There are players of various sports that have different level of athleticism but yet all are athletic.

 

I break a sweat every time I play golf or practice unless it's cold out, but even then my body temp rises.

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Along similar lines, my daughter has been in competitive equestrian events for about 9 years and bristles when people think they are not athletes. She rides for the Ohio State team and was at a clinic last Saturday held by a former US Olympic equestrian coach. He told them the the US is the only place he has been that treats equestrian athletes as if they are not athletes, mainly because they don't act like athletes, in his opinion. He gave examples of foreign teams that work out together after events rather than going for cocktails as the Americans usually do.

 

Maybe golf suffers from a similar fate because the general public associates golf with a relaxing, beer-swilling activity. That is hopefully changing because of the habits of guys like Tiger, DJ, Koepka, etc. who show the benefit of being an athlete.

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Hands down yes. Athletes are a balance of physical and mental strength. The difference between an average golfer and a professional is their mental acuity.

 

Walking 18 with your buddies is a lot different than playing 72 holes of tournament golf after two days of practice rounds and pro-am's mixed with range time; all while facing pressure of making a living.

 

Golfers are athletes. You won't change my mind.

 

 

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Ditto

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Average pro walks 7000 yards plus per round, or about 4 miles. They lift, run, and train on their days off, generally, and they hit THOUSANDS of balls as well. Yeah, that's an athlete. Besides, they get “athletic” scholarships in college don't they???? Yyyyyep!

 

 

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Yes

 

 

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Some are, some aren't. Most pros are athletes but you can't say all are (John Daly). Some amateurs are but your 400 pound, can't walk to the ball from the cart aren't athletes. However this is looking at the word athlete in a physical sense.

Looking at the word athlete in the mental sense, all pros are and some amatures are. They have to have mental fortitude to compete, practice, and take mental beatings from weather and the course.

While some amatures have this attribute not all do.

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Some are, some aren't. Most pros are athletes but you can't say all are (John Daly). Some amateurs are but your 400 pound, can't walk to the ball from the cart aren't athletes. However this is looking at the word athlete in a physical sense.

Looking at the word athlete in the mental sense, all pros are and some amatures are. They have to have mental fortitude to compete, practice, and take mental beatings from weather and the course.

While some amatures have this attribute not all do.

I'm sorry but by this argument CC Sabbathia wasn't an athlete when he was actually a great one albeit it not in the greatest shape.

 

Golf is an athletic endeavor, at all levels - obviously some golfers are more athletic than others. It's also true that other sports require different and perhaps greater athletic skills than Golf.

 

Golfers are athletes even the guy slogging beer staggering up the 18th - what kind of athletes are a better topic for discussion.

 

 

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I grew up playing basketball in the govt housing areas. Many of the guys I played with were both drunk and high. They were good athletes but under those conditions they did not perform nor were tested to the fullest degree of their athletic ability.

 

Do you have to be a good athlete to play golf? You don't have to be a good athlete to play any sport but you do have to be a good athlete to play all sports well.

 

There are some anomalies out there but I would argue that a poor athlete could not put a bag on his back for four rounds over four days while drinking and smoking along the way and play well.

 

So my point here is if played correctly as intended Golf is absolutely an athletic endeavor. It takes strength, coordination, flexibility, muscular endurance and mental focus. If you are in a cart smoking cigars and taking shots of jack you might be a great athlete but that which most tests your athletic ability has been all but removed from the equation.

 

 

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I'm sorry but by this argument CC Sabbathia wasn't an athlete when he was actually a great one albeit it not in the greatest shape.

 

Golf is an athletic endeavor, at all levels - obviously some golfers are more athletic than others. It's also true that other sports require different and perhaps greater athletic skills than Golf.

 

Golfers are athletes even the guy slogging beer staggering up the 18th - what kind of athletes are a better topic for discussion.

 

 

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By that definition, everyone is an athlete, we just need to determine if they are good, bad, all-around, specialized, etc.

CC Sabbathia was athletically inclined as a pitcher but put him at shortstop he would have been useless. He has specialized athletic ability, just not all-around athletic ability.

I suppose that all golfers are specialized athletes just some are more all-around athletically inclined than others.

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I would say yes.   Any athletic endeavor requires or mandates one's ability of their brain to control their body.   The fact that I find it difficult at times to control my body because the body will ignore the brain's instructions just means that I am a lousy athlete.

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I'm on the fence with this one. IMHO it doesn't require brute force strength hitting a 300 yard shot.It's more technique verus athleticism.

 

A true athletic sport for me is a physically fit specimen. One who can play multiple activities with their abilities. Ive never met a group of weaker out of shape people than golfers. It's almost like this group tends gravitating towards golf. Maybe the only ‘sport' they can do physically. I've always bitten my tounge when playing amateur golf with others. But boy you all are some weak out of shape people. I've grown up around many athletes. And you golfers just aren't it. Don't get me wrong, golf is a hard hard game . But I'm getting better thru proper technique versus natural athletic ability. This is more a book smart game and maybe why the golfer is more financially focused. Where a true athlete is more about focusing solely on body and their sport.How many times have you ran into a poor sector of a city being golfers. They are out there working their tails off at sports getting them out of that situation.

Keep it in the short stuff

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Initial answer yes, followed by it depends:The occasional golfer like the occasional cyclist, tennis player, etc probably not but those that compete yes. You only have to look at DJ's or Lexi's workout program to see that. 

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Yes and no. Most golfers are not athletes, they may be exceptionally gifted, but that doesn't make them athletes. IMO an athlete must be above average in multiple sports. Wether it's golf, baseball, football, or even soccer (sorry soccer fans). ALL PGA players are gifted, that still doesn't make them athletes. I think there's a difference in being great in one sport (gifted) and being able to play/do multiple sports(athlete). Just IMO

 

 

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I suppose a golfer can be considered an athlete. But when athletes come to mind golf isn't high on my list. Is Dustin Johnson? I guess so. Certainly more than most. Is John Daily? All that most golfers really do is walk (if that) and swing their arms, twist their body, and bend over to retrieve a ball or brush a leaf aside. 

Is a bowler an athlete? What about a Curler? Is everyone that participates in a sport an athlete? I suppose it all depends. I don't think I qualify technically. 

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I'm on the fence with this one. IMHO it doesn't require brute force strength hitting a 300 yard shot.It's more technique verus athleticism.

A true athletic sport for me is a physically fit specimen. One who can play multiple activities with their abilities. Ive never met a group of weaker out of shape people than golfers. It's almost like this group tends gravitating towards golf. Maybe the only ‘sport' they can do physically. I've always bitten my tounge when playing amateur golf with others. But boy you all are some weak out of shape people. I've grown up around many athletes. And you golfers just aren't it. Don't get me wrong, golf is a hard hard game . But I'm getting better thru proper technique versus natural athletic ability. This is more a book smart game and maybe why the golfer is more financially focused. Where a true athlete is more about focusing solely on body and their sport.How many times have you ran into a poor sector of a city being golfers. They are out there working their tails off at sports getting them out of that situation.

Ed, I can see how you would draw this conclusion.The video you recorded for me helping develop a work out routine (which i so appreciated ). Which was of you working out was beyond impressive.Your a true monster of muscle and would intimidate many at my golf facility.Your multi sport oriented thru your life where many of us are not.Remember this is a golf forum and many work at this just like an athlete in another sport would.In my opinion your still new too this game.Your outlook of this being a non athletic sport will change when you play more.Just by first hand perspective your arms and body are way overly developed for golf.Its more a flexibility sport vs a Mr Olympia build which you have.You will find that some of the Better AMs you play with have crazy flexibility.Instead of a mass muscle look

Keep it in the short stuff

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