Sport or Not?

It's one of THE age-old questions in the game of golf, especially nowadays, with fitness getting more and more of a reputation in the elite levels: is golf a sport or not?

Truthfully, I'm a bit on the fence. I think golf is basically a sport, and that any game that requires at least some aspects of athelticism or coordination should be considered such. Is knitting a sport? No. Is table tennis? Yes. The obvious hand-eye coordination required,
combined with the mental aspects of the game, put golf squarely in the "it's a sport" realm in my eyes. But at the same time, I see the point of some folks, that if it doesn't require constant running and jumping, how can it really be a sport? Sure, being fit is better, but if
obviously fat, out of shape individuals can play at the elite levels, how can you call it a sport?

Riddle me this: I have seen some pretty overweight linebackers in my time who play quite well in the professional ranks of the NFL. Does that mean that football isn't a sport? Or if it is a sport, does it mean there are SOME athletes on the football field, but the fat guys
just don't fit into that camp?

Now, if golf is a sport, is it one of the most demanding? Not physically for sure, but I would argue that at the highest levels, it is probably one of the most demanding mentally. And of course as we all know, the great thing about golf is that it can be just as demanding (relatively) at the club level. I might not be Zach Johnson on the final day of the Masters, but I bet he and I have similar thoughts when I'm coming down the stretch of my local Club Championship.

On a scale of 1 to 10, with one being "no way it's a sport" and 10 being "it's just like rugby", I would have to put golf in the 6-7 range. Not the most demanding sport in the world, but a sport nonetheless.

Philly Mick: Is He Finally Waking Up?

That's a question I have been asking myself for a few weeks now, and am asking myself even more since Mickelson's win at the Players. Is he back and will he continue to play good golf from now on, or is this
simply the latest peak in the sine wave of his golfing career?

He's played this well before people. He played this well at the 2004 Masters, slowly reverted back to his old self for a while, got it together again for the 2005 PGA, and managed to keep it going until shortly after the 2006 Masters. Everyone likes to talk about Winged Foot, but for anyone who was following Phil at the time, we knew he was lucky to be where he was on the final day of the 2006 U.S. Open. He was playing that tournament as a schizophrenic, caught between playing "smart golf" and "Mickelson golf". His raw talent got him to the position he was in on the final hole, but he didn't deserve to win that week.

His new fitness regime has gotten me inspired that maybe he's really trying to turn it around for the long-term this time. Before he seems to have just been trying to put on a band-aid at the beginning of each season, doing the things he thought he needed to do to compete in the majors, but not really buying into the philosophy for the long term. Now he's hired a fitness guy and switched swing coaches. Does that indicate he's ready to make that long-term change everyone has been waiting for?

If that is an indication, and he does make the change, then Winged Foot was good for him in the long run. Maybe it taught him a lesson that you can't just slap on a girdle and expect it to get you through to August
and then take it off and let out your gut until next year.

I am a big fan of Phil's. I have followed his career from almost the beginning, and for that reason, unfortunately, I have to say I'll believe it when I see it.

Double T to the G

Tommy and Ashley made it to the final nine holes last night in the Big Break: Reunion. I felt bad for Big Mike, but he simply didn't play well enough to advance. He was actually lucky to get it back to a sudden death situation. Ashley let him back in it with her poorish play in the final two or three holes. In the end though, I think the right two players have advanced.

As indicated by the title of this post, I am still ultimately rooting for Tommy to take it all. I wondered a couple of weeks ago when he played in Wachovia if that indicated a level of confidence that he had gained from winning the Big Break. I suppose we will all know next week at this time. I am worried a little bit about the Tomster though. His tee-to-green game seems to be "on", but we all know most of the time match play comes down to putting. Of the two, Ashley is clearly putting better.

Will her putting allow her to take the match, or will it simply allow her to stay in the match? Will Tommy catch fire on the greens and make the last question moot? Will Barefoot Dave ever shut up? Will Bri and Tommy have a little celebration after the match, whether he wins or loses? Is the sky blue? Is Bri rooting for Tommy or Ashley at this point? Will Gary ever be as good as he thinks he is? Am I just making up stupid questions at this point because my game sucks and I enjoy living vicariously through these people?

These are the hard-hitting questions people. And the answers might someday save our lives. Or perhaps more accurately, 20 minutes after the show is over, none of us will care.

Big Break Reunion: Donny's Exit

Wow. What an excellent example of why some guys can make it on the tour and some can't. I can't believe the bonehead decisions made by Donatello in this episode, starting with the decision to actually compete in the elimination in the first place. He had a free ride, worked hard to get it, and when the time came to use it, he didn't. It didn't make any kind of sense. It's one of those episodes where you wonder if it was scripted.

And then they get to the elimination, and he did what? He chips out of a waste area? He putts from 30 feet off the green? As Tommy said, it was definitely an indication of his nervousness. And if he couldn't control his nerves, he shouldn't have even been in the elimination.

Did he get to keep the money? He got the car, but did he have to not get eliminated to win the money too? I thought I saw a graphic that said that, but at the end he said he won a car and some money. I was confused.

At this point, I'd like to see pretty much any of the remaining four in the final match. I'm rooting for Two-Gloves to make it, and then anyone besides him. I wouldn't even care to see Barefoot Dave make it, just to
see him get beat. I was actually ready for Tommy and Don to make it to the end. I think that would have been a heck of a match to see.