If our best Women athletes played Golf would they dominate!

[JonMA1]

Do you think, if our best women athletes played youth girls golf, instead of the more common team sports. Would they dominate the LPGA tour?

Of course. But not because of genetics or origin of country. Increase the population of any group, and the number of members with exceptional potential increase, right? Start training members correctly at a younger age, and that potential increases.

It's also possible their training is superior.

I don't believe South Korea dominates because South Koreans are genetically better at golf. They dominate because there's a push for that at younger ages (I'm assuming). With a larger pool of participants and better, more focused training, more talent will rise to the top.

Golf is a game more than a sport and at the highest level is more mental. Great athletic skills are not required for golf.

I know it's a matter of how we define athleticism, but I have to respectfully disagree. People associate speed and power with athleticism, but I believe there is so much more. The ability to play golf at your level @tahoebum requires not only the mental ability as you've stated, but also physical abilities that not everyone has. At the tour level, I would assume it's freakishly higher. Balance, hand-eye coordination, precision, flexibility, and even speed are required to play at a high level. Those are athletic attributes, IMO.

 

[annsguy]

Hey NO GOAL You managed to take most of my comments way out of context. The title said OUR athletes. I took that to mean American Athletes. Of course any country has its share of great athletes. Also I said plainly that I was just throwing out names. Brady was an example. For all I know he is a great athlete but prefers to spend his time with his family.
I have coached kids who made it to the NBA. One was not overly athletic. I know golfers who are great athletes and played at a major ACC school and cant get off the mini tours. I know swimmers who have mssed the Olympics but tenths of a second who I would stake my life on the fact that they are better atletes than the person who made it. Romo is damn good at golf but I dont think he would have made a living on the tour.

 

[Snickerdog]

Xander is 26!!!!! He will win a major. So your post doesn’t back your argument.

No, you are assuming he will. There is no guarantee that he will. Does he have the talent to, yes, is it a guarantee, NO.
Prime example, Rickie Fowler= everyone said he was the next thing, and the guy can't finish a tournament. $38M in career winnings, I wouldn't give a hoot if I won a major with that bank roll.

You can NOT guarantee someone will win a Major.

 

[-CRW-]

I think the more important question to consider is whether the best American women athletes, if trained to play golf, could beat the average HS boys golf team. ?

 

[tahoebum]

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.

I don't underestimate athletic ability and there have been many D1 athletes in my family including my grandpa, four uncles, my brother and me(golf and also had an apline skiing scholarship that I turned down). My sister had a college scholarship for swimming but hated the idea of 5 am practices every day. I also have more than a basic understanding of a sport you've been referring to, soccer. I coached my son's soccer team for a few years when he started at age 5 and he played comp soccer for a decade in California starting at age 8. His high school team beat the #2 ranked team in the country his junior year. He could have easily played college soccer as several of his teammates did but chose ultimate frisbee instead, go figure. Why did I waste all that time traveling around for soccer tournaments when I could have been on the golf course, lol!?

What you fail to understand is golf, especially on the LPGA, is a lot more than just being athletic and having power. You casually say that "a pro can teach them the short game". I will tell you as someone who has kept my index mostly on the plus side of scratch the last 4 decades that great putters are born not made and only great putters make it on the LPGA or PGA Tours. All the great putters I played with in college and amateur golf just had "it", they didn't work harder or often as hard as those like me that were average or below with the flatstick. The average Korn Ferry Tour player hits it 302 yards off the tee, 10 yards longer than the average drive on the PGA Tour. Most of those guys will never play on the PGA Tour because they don't putt well enough and don't have the mental fortitude to hit the good shots under pressure and no amount of coaching or practice is likely to change either of those. I'm sure any of them would give up 10 or more yards off the tee to putt better or have the ability to calm themselves under pressure.

The math is much easier to become an NFL player or MLB player than it is to make it to the PGA Tour. Those that do make it have a much rarer mental ability than the freakish athletic ability that you commonly find in other sports.

 

[TheDoctor]

Xander is 26!!!!! He will win a major. So your post doesn’t back your argument.

Even if he does, and it isn't a guarantee, my post was nothing to do with age, it was in reference to your insistence that athleticism is what is needed

Now if John Daly is considered athletic, then I consider myself a world class athlete when I compare my physical condition to him

 

[echico]

If we had more females learning golf at a young age then yes we should have a larger pool of top tier female golfers.

Would we dominate....no. I will take this in a whole different direction. The age of the Instagram model will continue to diminish the female athlete because of the money. Why would someone spend hours a day practicing when they can get up to $30,000 a post on Instagram. We see it in multiple sports including golf that if you have a look then you will make way more money "modeling" than you will in sports.

Of course there are examples of athletes that do both and excel at their sport (Alex Morgan comes to mind) but the pay disparity in athletics means most of the money for female athletes is not on court, field, course. I have no problem with females making their money.

 

[Snickerdog]

Even if he does, and it isn't a guarantee, my post was nothing to do with age, it was in reference to your insistence that athleticism is what is needed

Now if John Daly is considered athletic, then I consider myself a world class athlete when I compare my physical condition to him

Couldn't decide whether to laugh or give appreciation. Ya John Daly is far form athletic.

 

[NoGoal]

No, you are assuming he will. There is no guarantee that he will. Does he have the talent to, yes, is it a guarantee, NO.
Prime example, Rickie Fowler= everyone said he was the next thing, and the guy can't finish a tournament. $38M in career winnings, I wouldn't give a hoot if I won a major with that bank roll.

You can NOT guarantee someone will win a Major.

Xander and Ricky will win at least one major in their career. If you don’t think that great, but I believe they are talented enough to win at least 1. Scott and Sergio both won 1 major!

 

[NoGoal]

Big difference between excelling at a sport and domination of a sport.

I should define dominate. It would be there would be more US women golfers than South Korean in the top 50 rankings.

 

[OITW]

Here is my take on this one,
The top athletes in their sports are there because the excel at what they do. If they wanted to transfer over to play golf professionally it would be maybe 1% of them that could do it.
The big thing that holds most back is hand eye coordination. If you don't have great hand eye coordination I don't think you could compete at the pro level of golf.

I agree here more than some of the other stuff bandied about in this thread.

I have a friend who is arguably an elite runner (runs 2:30 marathons) - no way in hell he could be an elite golfer because his hand eye coordination is trash, played softball with him one time and he couldn't catch the ball in warmups.

 

[Mark_UK]

Not sure I’m really getting the point of this thread? Are we asking, if women’s soccer players (a sport that requires foot and eye coordination) had spent their time on the golf course (a sport that requires hand eye coordination), they’d have been world class golfers instead of world class soccer players?


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[NoGoal]

I agree here more than some of the other stuff bandied about in this thread.

I have a friend who is arguably an elite runner (runs 2:30 marathons) - no way in hell he could be an elite golfer because his hand eye coordination is trash, played softball with him one time and he couldn't catch the ball in warmups.

Seriously a marathon runner? Someone who has a great VO2. Come on! I posted most athletic women collegiate players who play another sport such as soccer, softball, volleyball, hockey and even field hockey.

 

[NoGoal]

Not sure I’m really getting the point of this thread? Are we asking, if women’s soccer players (a sport that requires foot and eye coordination) had spent their time on the golf course (a sport that requires hand eye coordination), they’d have been world class golfers instead of world class soccer players?


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That if our most athletic collegiate women athletes played golf at a young age instead of their current sport. I truly believe US women would dominate the LPGA tour. Dominate as in the majority of the top 50 players on the LPGA would be US players instead of Korean players.

I keep reading takes more than athleticism to get on the LPGA tour. Yet, nobody can argue the fact that both Nelly and Jessica Korda both have athletic parents (pro tennis players) and the finances to give them the best youth golf coaching.

As for women soccer players, soccer requires touch and skill to excel at the sport. Lots of practice with the ball at their feet. Instead of juggling a ball at their feet, they would be juggling a golf ball with a wedge. Instead of bending a soccer ball left or right. They would be fading and drawing a golf ball. They would easily be a be to develop a great short game, if they started golf at a young age.

 

[Snickerdog]

Xander and Ricky will win at least one major in their career. If you don’t think that great, but I believe they are talented enough to win at least 1. Scott and Sergio both won 1 major!

Xander may win a major. As much as I hate to say it, Rickie Fowler will probably not.

 

[OITW]

We all know for the most part the Asian women are dominating the LPGA tour.

Do you think, if our best women athletes played youth girls golf, instead of the more common team sports. Would they dominate the LPGA tour?

Having a daughter who plays women D1 soccer. Watching uber athletic 5’7”-5’9” U.S. women soccer players. My buddy and I always ask why are these girls playing soccer, instead of golf where they can make a lot more money than pro women’s soccer.

Seriously a marathon runner? Someone who has a great VO2. Come on! I posted most athletic women collegiate players who play another sport such as soccer, softball, volleyball, hockey and even field hockey.

Show me where in your OP that it say that? I quoted it at the top for you, I don't see anything. You said BEST WOMEN ATHLETES, I would argue that my friend is a better ATHLETE than I am and I'm superior than him at most sports/games that require hand eye coordination.

I agreed with @Snickerdog that I think hand eye coordination is significantly more important for THIS particular sport/game and if a person's hand eye coordination is poor it would be tough for them.

PS you forgot lacrosse.

 

[NoGoal]

Show me where in your OP that it say that? I quoted it at the top for you, I don't see anything. You said BEST WOMEN ATHLETES, I would argue that my friend is a better ATHLETE than I am and I'm superior than him at most sports/games that require hand eye coordination.

I agreed with @Snickerdog that I think hand eye coordination is significantly more important for THIS particular sport/game and if a person's hand eye coordination is poor it would be tough for them.

PS you forgot lacrosse.

Did your friend play for a D1 college sports team? Did you? I ask, because maybe your friend isn’t as athletic as you think he is. It would provide clarity what you deem athletic.

 

[Mark_UK]

That if our most athletic collegiate women athletes played golf at a young age instead of their current sport. I truly believe US women would dominate the LPGA tour. Dominate as in the majority of the top 50 players on the LPGA would be US players instead of Korean players.

I keep reading takes more than athleticism to get on the LPGA tour. Yet, nobody can argue the fact that both Nelly and Jessica Korda both have athletic parents (pro tennis players) and the finances to give them the best youth golf coaching.

As for women soccer players, soccer requires touch and skill to excel at the sport. Lots of practice with the ball at their feet. Instead of juggling a ball at their feet, they would be juggling a golf ball with a wedge. Instead of bending a soccer ball left or right. They would be fading and drawing a golf ball. They would easily be a be to develop a great short game, if they started golf at a young age.

The argument I have about this though, is yes, with practice, and some decent coaching, probably anyone can become proficient at a sport. To be world class though takes an extra something special. Top class athletes obviously train hard, but what sets them apart is that extra natural talent they possess. There is a big jump from a low or scratch handicapper to someone on either the PGA or LPGA Tour.


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[NoGoal]

Im really surprised posters here selling their US women athletes short! To say, at a minimum 3000 D1 Power Conference collegiate women athletes couldn’t have become 30 LPGA tour players is crazy!

 

[NoGoal]

The argument I have about this though, is yes, with practice, and some decent coaching, probably anyone can become proficient at a sport. To be world class though takes an extra something special. Top class athletes obviously train hard, but what sets them apart is that extra natural talent they possess. There is a big jump from a low or scratch handicapper to someone on either the PGA or LPGA Tour.


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So would you say the Korda sisters are athletic anomalies? I say they are the blueprint for more athletic women players to dominate the LPGA tour.

 

[OITW]

Did your friend play for a D1 college sports team? Did you? I ask, because maybe your friend isn’t as athletic as you think he is. It would provide clarity what you deem athletic.

I did not play D1 sports, my friend did however. Did you play D1 sports? One of my other friends played D1 soccer, he still struggles with golf. I stand by my comment.

 

[IceyShanks]

Xander and Ricky will win at least one major in their career. If you don’t think that great, but I believe they are talented enough to win at least 1. Scott and Sergio both won 1 major!

I think they'll both win one this year.

But back on topic: I'll say maybe, depends on their skill level, just because they're good in one sport doesn't mean it can equate to another.

 

[Mark_UK]

So would you say the Korda sisters are athletic anomalies? I say they are the blueprint for more athletic women players to dominate the LPGA tour.

I don’t know who the Korda sisters are, so can’t comment. However, using this same argument, assuming it isn’t gender specific (I don’t see why it would be), if Lionel Messi, arguable the greatest footballer the world has seen, had put as much effort into golf as football, we’d now be talking about him instead of Tiger. Similarly, if Earl Woods has pushed his son on the football pitch instead of on the golf course, Tiger would be mentioned in the same breath as Pele? Sorry, it’s not an argument I can buy into.


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[NoGoal]

I don't underestimate athletic ability and there have been many D1 athletes in my family including my grandpa, four uncles, my brother and me(golf and also had an apline skiing scholarship that I turned down). My sister had a college scholarship for swimming but hated the idea of 5 am practices every day. I also have more than a basic understanding of a sport you've been referring to, soccer. I coached my son's soccer team for a few years when he started at age 5 and he played comp soccer for a decade in California starting at age 8. His high school team beat the #2 ranked team in the country his junior year. He could have easily played college soccer as several of his teammates did but chose ultimate frisbee instead, go figure. Why did I waste all that time traveling around for soccer tournaments when I could have been on the golf course, lol!?

What you fail to understand is golf, especially on the LPGA, is a lot more than just being athletic and having power. You casually say that "a pro can teach them the short game". I will tell you as someone who has kept my index mostly on the plus side of scratch the last 4 decades that great putters are born not made and only great putters make it on the LPGA or PGA Tours. All the great putters I played with in college and amateur golf just had "it", they didn't work harder or often as hard as those like me that were average or below with the flatstick. The average Korn Ferry Tour player hits it 302 yards off the tee, 10 yards longer than the average drive on the PGA Tour. Most of those guys will never play on the PGA Tour because they don't putt well enough and don't have the mental fortitude to hit the good shots under pressure and no amount of coaching or practice is likely to change either of those. I'm sure any of them would give up 10 or more yards off the tee to putt better or have the ability to calm themselves under pressure.

The math is much easier to become an NFL player or MLB player than it is to make it to the PGA Tour. Those that do make it have a much rarer mental ability than the freakish athletic ability that you commonly find in other sports.

So you don’t think there could have been 30 LPGA tour top 50 players among the 3000+ Power 5 women college athletes? If they played golf at a young age. Hard to believe statistically speaking.

 

[NoGoal]

I don’t know who the Korda sisters are, so can’t comment. However, using this same argument, assuming it isn’t gender specific (I don’t see why it would be), if Lionel Messi, arguable the greatest footballer the world has seen, had put as much effort into golf as football, we’d now be talking about him instead of Tiger. Similarly, if Earl Woods has pushed his son on the football pitch instead of on the golf course, Tiger would be mentioned in the same breath as Pele? Sorry, it’s not an argument I can buy into.


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You don’t know who the Korda sisters are? WTH!!! They both went undefeated in the Solheim Cup! Nelly won like 2 times last year on the LPGA tour and is ranked in the top 5 in the world and she is only 21. Her sister Jessica is about mid twenties and ranked top 20 in the world. There father is Peter Korda a former professional tennis player.

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I believe Tiger would have been playing MLB, if not for golf. Would he be Mike Trout, probably not, but I believe he had the ability to play MLB. But, back to my OP....this is about US women not dominating the LPGA tour, because our best women athletes are not playing golf.