Is Golf a Sport?

im not reading this dumb article. the fact is, golf takes physical skill, therefore it is a sport. man, i have seen some dumb articles from this site, i just havent felt like registering to post comments until now.

@Joe_DS

I think that's the point they're making; does physical skill or exertion alone define a sport? Hell darts takes physical skill, doesn't mean it's a sport.

This author does not understand the simplest math.

"Subjects walking and carrying their clubs burned 721 calories per round"

4 hours per round = 180 calories per hour

"So golf burns more calories than an hour of billiards (216), fishing (302), or even a relaxed canoe trip (345)"

NO NO NO! According do the data provided, golf burns less calories.

Guys. The only people who argue about this either do it for fun or have never picked up a dictionary

Sport:
1. an athletic activity requiring skill or physical prowess and often of a competitive nature, as racing, baseball, tennis, golf, bowling, wrestling, boxing, hunting, fishing, etc.

YES golf is a sport.

Darts CAN be a sport though. If you go and shoot a round of darts its a game.

if 2 or more people shoot a round of darts competitively ITS A SPORT.

Once you make it a competition among contestants its a SPORT if it meets this definition

1. an athletic activity requiring skill or physical prowess and often of a competitive nature, as racing, baseball, tennis, golf, bowling, wrestling, boxing, hunting, fishing, etc.

Poker? Gaming? there close but I would say they don't meet the "Athleic activity" portion of the definition.

GOLF does.

Golf is a sport, so is poker and playing a vigorous round of cranium. Golfers are not athletes and golf is not an athletic event. Here are the dictionary definitions:

Sport
an athletic activity requiring skill or physical prowess and often of a competitive nature, as racing, baseball, tennis, golf, bowling, wrestling, boxing, hunting, fishing, etc

Athlete
a person trained or gifted in exercises or contests involving physical agility, stamina, or strength; a participant in a sport, exercise, or game requiring physical skill.

Athletics
athletic sports, as running, rowing, or boxing.

Sports do not equal exercise. Riding a bike is exercise, a bike race is sport. Sports require competition where prowess determines victory.

That prowess may be physicality (football - lineman), speed (track), accuracy (baseball), or, most likely, a combination of the three. All will also include a certain amount of mental prowess as well.

Archery is one of the oldest sports out there. Yes, it is less physical than its predecessor (spear chucking and rock throwing - or "javelin" and "shot put" for those more civilized that I).

Golf then is clearly a sport. Not because of walking, but because it is an exercise of skill of accuracy, albeit a meaningless one, tied to silly tradition, bad clothes, and a destruction of more useful green space.

So, if you feel the need to make fun of golf, and I often do, do not do so because it is not a sport, but because it makes men into women and women into men. Then go play some football.

With his police and legal background, Dismas Hardy (author Lescroart) would argue strongly that darts is a sport. Of course golf is a sport.

I've never understood why a person wants to be so critical of others who find value in things they do not. If you personally don’t care for Golf – well then fine. It is irrelevant if you define it as a sport or as athletics.

I am just learning the game / sport golf. I am doing it to spend time with my husband outdoors and we are having a great time with it. I don’t think it is affecting our gender in any way. Good Grief.

This article is basically a fluff piece. The title is misleading and doesn’t even try to answer the questions posed. It tells the reader how many calories are burned doing certain activities. I’m sure the amount of calories burned by those writing these silly comments (Myself Included) burned more than the writer of the article.

What ever the sport / game / athletic feat…. Enjoy yours and don’t sweat about the rest.

Abbynormal42@hotmail.com

If you walk the entire 18 holes then its a sport, if you drive the cart and drink beer the entire time then its just a game.

The warm feeling I get when someone is thoughtful enough to say thank you for having been helped far outweighs the empty one I get when there's no feedback at all.

callaway x

Golf is not a sport. it's a competition the same as bowling,poker,pool,chess,shuffle board,musical chairs etc.etc.The undeniable proof in the pudding is what happen a few weeks ago when a 59 YEAR OLD Tom Watson, came within a hair of winning a major golf tournament .Seriously! The fact that a 59 year old was competitive should end any and all debate whether golf is a sport or at the very least an athletic sport.Football,baseball,basketball,boxing,tennis,track & field & swimming just to name a few, are sports that require athletic ability.No one can imagine a 59 year old Jerry Rice,Tom Brady, Willie Mays,Derek Jeter,Michael Jordan,Kobe Bryant,Muhammad Ali,Oscar Delahoya,Serena Williams,Jimmy Connors,Carl Lewis,Michael Johnson or Michael Phelps seriously being competitive in their particular sport at the age of 59.These ATHLETES careers are over in their late 20's 30's or early 40's.Golf Isn't SPORT!Because just like in pool,shuffle board,bowling,chess and yes musical chairs you're still able to compete at the ripe old age of 59 or older.GOLF'S A COMPETITION not a sport & golfers ARE NOT!!!! athletes.CASE CLOSE!!!!!!!!!!!

Awesome! Thanks for the great post and quick response!

ladies golf clubs

Too funny. Sport by definition is to amuse, perhaps a physical activity engaged in for pleasure or a particular activity. So, by definition golf is a sport, it is also a game. The real question comes in whether it an exercise? Yes, on a hot day I can crack a sweat playing golf. I can crack a sweat doing the same sport shooting. Though, I have never cracked a sweat bowling unless the AC was broken. In all cases each is a sport, but none would be considered exercise (unless it's under a time-limit, but then the running/sprinting would justify the exercise, go figure).

I think people get riled up over the "Is *blank* a sport?" question because when they hear someone ask it, they naturally assume the other person i insinuating that *blank* activity requires no skill or athletic ability. But that is not the case.

Aside from competitive nature and athleticism, for me, the issue of whether or not an activity was a sport or not always revolved around ONE issue. Does one player's/teams's performance have a DIRECT influence on the outcome of their opponent.

Baseball, you can get a player out by catching a ball, or tagging them, or striking them out. In football you can ruin a play by tackling someone or intercepting their throw. In basketball, you can steal a ball or block a throw. These are all sports. Using this criteria, golf, TO ME, is not a sport, because unless you have that 1/1000 chance of hitting their golfball with yours, your performance has no outcome on the other player(s). Or in other words, if the activity can be played with only one player/one team the same way it would be played with 2 or more teams, it is not a sport.

Running - NOT a sport
Golf - NOT a sport
Billiards - A sport (think about it, you can block/hit opponents balls)
Bowling - NOT a sport
Fencing - A sport
Baseball - A sport
Paintball - A sport
Any kind of racing where each racer is given their own exclusive track/lane and/or they have a wide enough area so that space isn't a huge issue - NOT a sport
NASCAR - A sport, cars can block other cars
PingPong - A sport

chiliman,

"It is estimated that Leroy "Satchel" Paige was born on July 7, 1906. The mere idea that his birthday is an estimate provides perfect evidence to the mystery that was Satchel Paige. In 1965, 60 years after Paige's supposed birthday, he took the mound for the last time, throwing three shutout innings for the Kansas City Athletics."

by your "infallible" logic, baseball would not be considered a sport and therefore all the other sports that you deemed worthy of the title.

I think gols is a sport, and it's the same for bowling, poker, chess ... I don't agree with Chiliman. It's not because people of 59 years old practice this activity that is not a sport !!

words mean things and not everything is not a sport. Sports should involve motion/running, teamwork, a ball, and the ability to influence the other team.
Everything else is a “skills contest” or “athletic event.”
For example: Golf, pool, darts, chess, & bowling are all skills contests.
Boxing, bicycling, and running are examples of athletic events.
Football and Basketball are sports. Baseball barely qualifies as a sport. ;-)