.....does best athlete dominate.....NO
If our best Women athletes played Golf would they dominate!
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- #52
Precision like archery, darts and bowling? I play to a 4 hdcp and I never took a lesson in my life. I may not be PGA tour caliber, but I’m not a hack too. It’s why I believe if an athlete played golf at a young tender age of 6-8 and loved the sport. They would excel after many years of training at a youth age. Refer to Jessica and Nelly Korda for examples.
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- #53
Tiger considers himself an athlete and he dominates. If he played baseball at a young age and stuck with it. He would have been MLB material.
Explain how Nelly and Jessica Korda both ranked in top 10 and 20 respectively made it to the LPGA tour coming from 2 athletic parents themselves? They made it because, both parents were athletic and they had money to buy the best youth coaching.
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I voted no because golf is just a different animal altogether from other sports. You don’t have to be an Uber athletic person to help play golf. Now I am by no means a scratch golfer but I am also 40 and only been playing 2.5 years. I am also a big man and not what most would consider to be athletic but I am certain that aside I would be a much better golfer had I learned at a much younger age.
Golf skill comes more down to time and effort spent and some natural ability then being a superior athlete.
Golf skill comes more down to time and effort spent and some natural ability then being a superior athlete.
Who are our best male athletes. LeBron, Tom Brady, Steph. Just throwing out names. Could they become our best golfers. Steph is a really good player but no. Why is it different for women. Could we start a training program to identify the best athlete and funnel them to golf. I guess so but passion is an ingrediant to any success. Our best golfers of ether gender are good athletes with passion,skills, coordination and a brain for golf.
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- #56
I think many in here underestimate athleticism and how it would translate to golf. I recall during the PGA Championship when Koepka was winning another major. The golf channel crew stated they are seeing more and more athletic male players who would have played, baseball, basketball, football now playing golf at a young age instead and now seeing them on tour.
While being an athlete and having a competitive mindset would help, golf is a different sport compared to soccer, basketball, football, or baseball. These all require quick reactions and instinct. Golf is a slower sport hitting a ball that doesn’t move.
Just watch some of these Pro-Ams on TV. You have hall of famers looking ridiculous on the course compared to LPGA or PGA pros.
Just watch some of these Pro-Ams on TV. You have hall of famers looking ridiculous on the course compared to LPGA or PGA pros.
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- #58
Let’s be honest Tom Brady is not the most athletic and he is the GOAT QB in football.
Let’s take Tony Romo, if he played only golf as a youth instead of football. Practiced and had the best youth PGA coaches forging his swing and short game. He would have made the PGA tour. Same can be said for John Smotlz and Curry, and any other scratch golfer who plays another professional sport.
Are you implying the South Korean women are not athletic? I say they are, don’t underestimate their athleticism because they are smaller.
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- #59
Pro-ams (other sport athletes) didn’t play golf at a young age and didn’t received professional coaching at a young age to excel at it.
True. In that case it just depends if they want to play golf. Now thinking about it, my niece is athletic and she’s getting into golf. Her swing is shaping up nicely but she’s still has a way to go.
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- #61
Exactly, How old is your niece?
I don’t know about the comparative question but there are players with more athleticism and talent. If they have access to skill development and put in the training work, they will be better players. Golf is a game and a sport.
I also believe that those with more talent and superior athletic ability are simply a numbers game, some per capita average. More people, more athletes. Now finding them and providing access to golfing, instruction, and competition is equally important.
I also believe that those with more talent and superior athletic ability are simply a numbers game, some per capita average. More people, more athletes. Now finding them and providing access to golfing, instruction, and competition is equally important.
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- #63
Xander Schauffele is athletic. His dad was an athlete before an eye injury and his 2 great grandfathers played professional european soccer.
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- #64
Great post and I agree!
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But those are always the same distance and same implement. Golf is 14 different clubs from an infinite variety of distances and lies. Not to mention the variety of shot shapes. I think the precision Tiger Woods produces is more than any archer, bowler, or dart thrower exhibits..
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- #66
It’s also the same swing. Just different clubs, adjusting your stance to work the ball and ball position to flight the ball higher or lower.
That is hard to guage, but I would say no. I just don't think the drive is there for them.
Big difference between excelling at a sport and domination of a sport.
I’ll say again golf is not like other sports(to me it’s a game, not a sport) as the vast majority of PGA Tour players have no chance of playing a professional sport such as football or baseball. Here’s the top 30 and I’ll make the argument that maybe only 1 or 2, if any, could hit a 95mph fastball and all but Koepka would get destroyed on an NFL field.
Golf at the top level is mostly mental and short game an neither correlate with natural athletic ability that other sports require. Most who haven’t played on the plus side of scratch fail to understand how much of this game is mental and how much different college level and above tournament golf is. The professional tours are also a lot more exclusive than other sports. There are only about 100 Americans who play on the PGA Tour and many like Phil have been there for decades. The NFL for a comparison has 1,900 players each year and the average career is only 3.5 years so the turnover is much greater. When you consider the same 50 golfers keep their PGA Tour Cards for 15+ years there are not many openings each year for the best college and mini tour players. The women’s game has even fewer spots as the 100th ranked player makes less than $100k.
Golf at the top level is mostly mental and short game an neither correlate with natural athletic ability that other sports require. Most who haven’t played on the plus side of scratch fail to understand how much of this game is mental and how much different college level and above tournament golf is. The professional tours are also a lot more exclusive than other sports. There are only about 100 Americans who play on the PGA Tour and many like Phil have been there for decades. The NFL for a comparison has 1,900 players each year and the average career is only 3.5 years so the turnover is much greater. When you consider the same 50 golfers keep their PGA Tour Cards for 15+ years there are not many openings each year for the best college and mini tour players. The women’s game has even fewer spots as the 100th ranked player makes less than $100k.
I wouldn't call John Daly athletic, yet he has 2 majors to his name and Xander has none - guess that proves athleticism means nothing?
This thread is entirely hypothetical and guesswork, there is no way you can know that because someone excels at one particular sport that they could have excelled at another if they had started when they were younger
On top of this, a lot of comparisons are being made between team sports and golf - in a team you have other people to help you out during a game, whereas an individual sport like golf has nobody to cover for mistakes etc
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I'm not sure anyone else has mentioned it here, but team vs individual is also completely different from a mental aspect as someone competing.
Just beat you to it in my post above
Spatial reasoning. Proprioception. Hand eye coordination. Etc. These are all components of athletic capability. Tom Brady has minimal athleticism in the raw physical sense but is one of the best athletes in pro football. I would not underestimate the athleticism of of tour players.
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- #74
Xander is 26!!!!! He will win a major. So your post doesn’t back your argument.
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- #75
I think you underestimate abilities of athletes. So explain Jessica and Nelly Korda to me? Athleticism will allow players to get in perfect position, generate power for the distance needed. A pro can teach them the short game. Would they have the mental fortitude who knows, but out of 100 athletic women playing another collegiate sport. I would bet at least 1 would make rhe LPGA tour. Then change 100 number to 1000 collegiate soccer, 1000 collegiate softball, 1000 collegiate volleyball, etc women players and now we have 30 LPGA players in the same mold of Nelly and Jessica Korda.