How is golf a sport

My opinion, and likely most of the readers of this site, is that golf is most certainly a sport by the dictionary definition:. Sport — noun. Competitive golf is a physical activity requiring skill and is scored, which certainly meets the definition. The case against golf being a sport, in my opinion, is based on limited or skewed perceptions of golf and golfers. Golf is commonly referred to as a game.

While there can be arguments about the semantics, a game is a physical or mental activity with rules played for entertainment. That means all sports are types of games. The critical aspect of sports is that they are physical activities. Interestingly, there is no defined level of physical exertion needed to qualify as a sport. Detractors will point out that the bulk of physical work in golf is simply walking.

Walking 18 holes, however, is usually around 5 miles, a definite physical exertion. Even using a golf cart, golfers still tend to walk more than a mile, and all of that is in addition to swinging a club dozens of times putting excluded. Compare that to baseball, which is widely regarded as a sport. While baseball has some running, it is typically in bursts of no more than feet at a time.

Besides that, the majority of the game is spent standing and waiting for something to happen. The fact that golfers, even at the professional levels, come in all shapes and sizes is often used as evidence that these competitors are not athletes, and therefore golf is not a sport. A point that a lot of people that do not consider golf a sport love to make is that golfers are not athletic.

Do not misunderstand that comment and think that no golfers are athletic. But there are certainly people who are good at golf and not athletic. It is a valid point because when casual golf fans turn on the television, they might see golfers that are very out of shape and do not look impressive in their physique or body composition. While that does not mean that they are not athletic, it does make someone who is not super familiar with golf think that the game is full of people who are not true athletes.

With golf there are basically two different settings that the game is played in. There are tournaments and there are casual golf rounds. When talking about casual golf rounds, many people argue that golf is not a sport after referring to the true definition of what a sport is. Remember that there needs to be a competition in most cases for something to be considered a sport. Well, when you are out playing golf with friends and not playing skins or a tournament, then there is no competitive aspect theoretically.

Of course, in your head you might be competing against your previous scores, but there is no set in stone competition. The final major argument involves all sides of golf, whether it is in a competitive tournament or in a casual golf round.

Basically, they are referring to other sports and how there is defense or a strategy to stop other players. In golf, that does not exist. Now I will break down why golf is indeed a sport and the evidence to back up this side of the debate. A big part of any sport, especially golf, is being competitive.

Golf is seen as just a game, but golfers are highly competitive. In any sport you just have to play one day, but in golf a tournament may be up to four days that you have to play. One piece to show how competitive golfers are is they get injured often. Open despite playing with his left knee missing an ACL and two stress fractures in his left tibia. This shows that golfers will stop at nothing to win. Golfers, like other sport players, have to deal with injuries. Some athletes sit out and rest, but golfers only have certain chances for tournaments.

Golf also is an individual sport, no one else can ensure the win. Independent sports also require the ability to count on yourself and no one else. I, too, have dealt with injuries in golf; I hurt my wrist and was in brace for two month and I still played in four competitions. One of the most essential part of any sport is the mental game. Mental game is almost as important as being physically strong.

In football and soccer, the mental part is knowing the play, but in golf, it is knowing how to do the shot, doing what lays ahead, and blocking out what others have done. This quote is showing if you are the slightest bit off, you will not be able to play your best game. In golf, you have to be so precise because, if you miss the ball slightly, it will throw off your whole shot.

In other sports, if you miss slightly you have someone to help, but not in golf. Golf is not only a physical sport but it is also a sport of the mind, and without that aspect you would not be able to play.

The mental part of golf shows that it is a sport. By comparison, an hour of basketball burns calories, soccer over This has some fact behind, it but not all. Basketball and soccer are both anaerobic sports, but you do not play the whole game. Basketball and soccer games are on average 90 to minutes, compared to golf which is on average minutes.

Not only that, but an hour of golf is a better workout then gymnastics. Golfing without a cart burns an average of calories per hour, compared to about calories doing gymnastics.