Are these really sports.....

[PHS Wildcats]

I was talking with a few co-workers of mine and we were debating on if Golf, NASCAR and Poker were sports. I know it takes skill, but is it really a sport? I remember a guy smoking during a golf tourney last year. If you can smoke while playing then I don't think it's a sport. I'm not trying to disrespect the people that play, but just wanted some of your opinions.

[coach]

golf is for sure, NASCAR maybe, and if poker is then so is checkers so no for poker

[orange machine]

If it comes on ESPN its a sport.

[thewyliefan]

ive always wonndered but have never known.....what does espn stand for?

[jason]

nascar - no, the car does all the work

poker - no, there is no physical activity

golf - yes, YOU have to hit the ball straight and put it in the hole and you have to be (somewhat) physically fit to walk 18 holes 4 days in a row

[orange machine]

Originally posted by thewyliefan
ive always wonndered but have never known.....what does espn stand for?

Entertainment and sports programming network

[PHS Wildcats]

you beat me to it

[coach]

i want to name my kid espn

[piratebg]

Originally posted by orange machine
If it comes on ESPN its a sport.


So the National Spelling Bee is a sport? :confused:

[nobogey72]

Golf is a tough one for me. I love golf and I play or at least hit range balls almost every day. However, to put it in it's proper category is hard for me to do. I didn't grow up playing golf like a lot of the guys I play with now did. Most of them at least played in HS and some of them in college. This exact topic came up one day and these college golfers that are now in their 40s were argueing about the athletic ability required. While it was hard for me to disagree to a certain point, I also reminded them that when a 13 yr old girl (Michelle Wii, and I know that she is older than that now) can beat 90% of the male college golfers in the nation, then............... you have to draw your own conclusion. To me, all you can say is Golf is what it is. It's alot like bowling in that the great ones aren't all necessarily great athletes, but have the ability to make a movement the same way, over and over and over, and add great mental discipline.

[Emerson1]

Nascar - Yes, 500 miles in a scorching car
Golf - Yes, I can barely walk 18, let alone 4 days worth for months straight
Poker - No, all luck

[jimmyceatworld]

NASCAR and poker - no, because they require no PHYSICAL ability. You use a automobile for crying out loud in Nascar and poker is exactly what it is, just a card game. I'm not saying they're not great (although to be honest I hate NASCAR) but that doesn't make it a sport.

Golf - I'd say yes and here's why: Golf does take physical ability and includes several of the things that define a sport IMO. But I think it's more of a second tier sport. Main ones obviously being football, basketball, baseball etc. 2nd level ones are like most Olympis sports and ... golf

[ASUFrisbeeStud]

We've had the arguement about golf many times, search for the threads. I'm too lazy right now.

[RMAC]

Yes, Yes and No. Golf is a sport, it takes skill and some physical stamina to participate it. NASCAR is a sport. I won't try to explain the physics, but if you lose up to 10 pounds in sweat during a race, it's a sport. You have to be in VERY good physical condition to take 15 degree turns at 150+ MPH and do it up to 1,000 times in a period of 3-4 hours and not black out once, even with all the loss of water. Poker, no. There's strategy and skill, but absolutely NO physical activity outside of moving your arms is required.

[PHS Wildcats]

Originally posted by Emerson1
Nascar - Yes, 500 miles in a scorching car

Pretty much a road trip with no AC

[coach]

Originally posted by jimmyceatworld
NASCAR and poker - no, because they require no PHYSICAL ability. You use a automobile for crying out loud in Nascar and poker is exactly what it is, just a card game. I'm not saying they're not great (although to be honest I hate NASCAR) but that doesn't make it a sport.

Golf - I'd say yes and here's why: Golf does take physical ability and includes several of the things that define a sport IMO. But I think it's more of a second tier sport. Main ones obviously being football, basketball, baseball etc. 2nd level ones are like most Olympis sports and ... golf

they say in 2016 golf will be in the olympics...and does anyone know what the acronym for golf is?

[nobogey72]

Originally posted by coach
they say in 2016 golf will be in the olympics...and does anyone know what the acronym for golf is?

Gentlemen Only Ladies Forbidden. Read that in a golf history book.

[coach]

Originally posted by nobogey72
Gentlemen Only Ladies Forbidden. Read that in a golf history book.

good job:clap:

[Txbroadcaster]

Originally posted by nobogey72
Gentlemen Only Ladies Forbidden. Read that in a golf history book.


Not True

http://www.snopes.com/language/acronyms/golf.asp

[Tin Cup]

golf is a sport...the reason i know this is because we had our sports banquet tonight and the golf team was part of it LOL

[crabman]

I hear this argument all of the time. I would have to say Nascar - No, Golf - No, and Poker - No.

A sport is an athletic endeavor where your opposition attempts to inhibit your success. All sports, in my opinion, have a defense of some type and require athletic ability. Golf does not pass that test. Are golfers athletes? Absolutely. Is it a sport? Not really. You do the best you can and so does the other guy. The score is quantifiable but it does not involve one guy trying to inhibit the other's progress.

Sports - rugby, water polo, soccer (gag), badminton, racquetball, lacrosse.

Not sports - track and field, ice skating, golf. They are exhibitions that have winners.

IMHO.

[Diocletian]

taken directly from the Oxford

sport

• noun 1 an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others. 2 informal a person who behaves in a good or specified way in response to teasing, defeat, etc. 3 success or pleasure derived from an activity such as hunting. 4 dated entertainment; fun. 5 chiefly Austral./NZ a friendly form of address, especially between unacquainted men. 6 Biology an animal or plant showing abnormal or striking variation from the parent type as a result of spontaneous mutation


Nascar: invovles phsical exertion in the pit, turning the wheel, shifting gears, pressing the clutch/gas/brake....it's 100% competitve, and requires skill by the driver AND the repair crew to suceed.

Poker: focused more on the skill, the only exertion required is the placing of chips down, but still is VERY competitive and requires a great amount of skill.


I've also seen many people playing basketball, baseball, and football having a smoke or goofing around.... the "sport" part of the any activity has more to do with competition and mental/physical skill needed to do well at it.


On a side note: there has to be a good reason why in High School there is an elective class called "Athletics" and not "Sports"... even though people who play sports are called athletes sometimes, just goes to show you that even our structured learning base doesn't even consider the word sport as being 100% athletic.... and in some private schools you can substitute electives such as chess/golf for the required athletic standard credit. Just weird how it all plays out, and proves that everyone in the world DOES disagree about the term "sport"

[48minutes]

poker no nascar yes and golf yes

You could go on and on for days about golf being or not being a sport lol