Golf vs. Pool - Revisited

Snapshot9 said:
The nature of the beast, as they say,

The allure to be drawn to Pool happens much
more frequently than in Golf. Pool offers more
conveniences while playing than Golf (indoors,
bathrooms, cost less, drinks, food, able to
socialize with larger group of people, can
actually 'see' if an opponent is cheating you,
isn't as tiring, able to continue longer with the
sport as you age)

Plus, I have known quite a few Pool Players that
like Golf as well, and if they play too much Golf,
somehow it seems to throw their Pool game off.

I play golf as well. If I play golf before pool, my pool game goes up a notch. Much easier to get in the zone for some reason. I think it might be because of the mental state for golf carries over into pool.
 
fxskater said:
True enough. But i consider shooting in the 70's an A player, a B player in the 80's, and a C player in the 90's. I would consider my self a low B player, and i dont often miss the mark by that much, maybe once or twice a round, again it was just an example. The reason i feel i shoot in the 80's right now is my short game. 50 yards and in is hell for me, especially since my highest lofted club right now is a 46 degree pitching wedge. So just 10 yards off the green with say 20 feet of green between me and the pin is more hellish than 100 yards out in the fairway. I can have some pretty bad days on the greens too. I am a high B (not gonna debate being an A in this thread) in pool after 3 years and a low B in Golf after 1 year and only 8-10 championship courses.

My opinion is that players that shoot in the mid to low 70's is a B+ player. Players that can shoot a 70 (par 72 course) would qualify as a (A) player in my book.. Players that shoot 65 would be a pro level player...(depending on the types of courses played to shoot 65)

What you have going for you (based on your post above) is "common sense" aka (course management) for some that is harder to learn than the actual swing.....

Same as in pool...(table management) can be one of the hardest things to master at pool

Really the truth is neither is more difficult overall or easier over all...They are very similar in some respects, but the mechanics (actual motion) of the full golf swing and pool stroke are so different that they really can't be compared...

I am pretty sure I know the original poster well enough to know that he was probably being a little sarcastic in his post...

Point of example that one can't be listed as harder than the other...It is no secret that the original poster is one of the best in the state of Arizona and probably a contender in any 9-ball event....I have not seen him play Golf in a while, but I would bet $$$ that he could not beat me at a round of golf on a championship level course...At the same time I am sure he would bet all the $$$ he had that he would beat me in a race to 10 ahead game of 9-ball......and you can't use the lack of practice argument, because I know for a fact that he has worn out the finish on a few clubs...and I have worn out many tips practicing on a table at my house....
 
pete lafond said:
I play golf as well. If I play golf before pool, my pool game goes up a notch. Much easier to get in the zone for some reason. I think it might be because of the mental state for golf carries over into pool.
i Would say i gotta agree with the other guy. I can feel the changes in my body if i play more golf than pool. I'm talking about playing golf tonnes and pool maybe once a week. I notice that after playing golf a tonne, playing pool it seems like your back muscles are bulkier, i think it makes it harder to stroke in pool if you play lots of golf. Last summer i played so much golf that one side of my back got twice as muscular as the other side of my back and i had to go to the chiropractor. She gave me a bunch of exercises, but winter was just around the corner, so that took care of my back not getting to much exercise on one side vs doing stupid exercises and movements. HEHE im so lazy.
 
fxskater said:
Give me a tee every time and i can guarantee you I'll shoot under 80 just about every time.
.....
In golf, if you have a bad swing, there are so many more different things you can do to improve it. With enough time on the driving range, you can figure out, how to not come over the top, or how not to turn your shoulders early, or move your feet a little here a little there, and get things worked out in a fairly short period of time, to wear you can be shooting under 90.
.....
You generally have to be MORE PERFECT in pool.

Harvey Pennick was a fan of having raw beginners tee up their ball in the fairways. It's a lot easier to get the ball in the air, something that causes beginners problems. I also love your 'just about always guarantee', nice little oxymoron there.

Most golfers cannot 'get things worked out' , it's very hard to do by yourself. Some video equipment helps, but it's a lot easier to get the initial improvement under the eyes of an instructor/professional. Now if you take a long time (as opposed to your 'fairly short period of time'), one can figure out how to make a bad swing work to some degree, but it will still be a bad swing. The proper motion is not an intuitive one, so it is very hard to get right without additional feedback from someone knowledgeable. Translation : I think your crazy about the idea of how a person with a bad swing can improve.

A wise man once said "golf is not a game of perfect". I don't think pool is either (not that I am very wise, just ask my wife or kids ! ).

Dave
 
pete lafond said:
I play golf as well. If I play golf before pool, my pool game goes up a notch. Much easier to get in the zone for some reason. I think it might be because of the mental state for golf carries over into pool.

POOL ALWAYS HAS A STATIC ENVIRONMENT, IE, THE TABLE. ALWAYS A PERFECTLY FLAT SURFACE, ALWAYS THE SAME DIMENSIONS. NO BUNKERS, OR SAND, NEVER RAINS ON THE TABLE. NO WALKING MILES. CADDY HOLDS AN UMBRELLA OVER YOUR HEARD. NO TREES TO CONTEND WITH. NO WIND BLOWS UP TO SPOIL YOUR SHOT. GREAT LAND O GOSHEN, WHAT THE HELL MORE DO YOU WANT. COMPARED TO GOLF, POOL IS A WALK IN THE PARK. A NO BRAINER. A PIECE OF CAKE. POOL IS THE SAME AIM FOR ANY SHOT, OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER, FOR ANY ANGLE OF CUT. MIND-NUMBING. JUST STARTED TO NOD OFF THINKING ABOUT IT. MENTAL STATE FOR POOL? DORMANT. MIGHT AS WELL BE ASSIGNED A RUBBER ROOM BY A WHITE-COATED ATTENDANT. SNOOZE TIME. FORTY WINKS.


HAL
 
sonia said:
POOL ALWAYS HAS A STATIC ENVIRONMENT, IE, THE TABLE. ALWAYS A PERFECTLY FLAT SURFACE, ALWAYS THE SAME DIMENSIONS.

You've never played on my table :(

Dave, who might even place a wager on the contention that all pool tables are flat and with the same dimensions ...

PS I do agree with the general concept, that weather elements and course design differences are part of golf and not part of pool, making pool that much simpler.
 
ScottR said:
As you say "no offense", but I don't get your point. What does the number of people trying to achieve a goal have to do with how hard it is? It's more a factor of the popularity of the game than its difficulty.

As for your other post . . . . . whether you can consistently shoot under 80 is not the point (although I'd have to call bullshit until I see it, for two reasons:
the % of golfers who can legitimately break 80 (USGA handicap index of roughly 6.0 or less), playing by ALL the rules, is well under 2% of all golfers; and you said you play on a "shitty little par 3 course" and THAT ain't golf).

The point of this thread is how hard are the two games to master. Golf has many more challenges to master. Remember, we are talking about the population in general, NOT whether you can master one over the other.


I would point out that golfers with handicaps much higher than 6 break 80 some of the time. I don't play much anymore and struggle with my game. I have a 12 handicap. I do have some old scores in there. This year I have a 76 from the men's tees at my club and a 78 from the back tees. Not the hardest course, but water and OB are around. Also about 3 really tough holes from the back tees. I should be lower than a 12, but I would guess the 6's at my club put up mostly rounds in the mid to high 70's. Their best rounds will be around par. I shoot a lot of 81's and such as a miserable 12.


As to the general topic, I have posted this before, but here goes again. I like both games. Both games are hard. I think golf is harder. All the precision, all the mental stuff, and more demanding in terms of physical ability. Golf really comprises 3 games. Full shots, wedges/chips/pitches, and putting. Each is like its own sport in some ways. But both are hard and I don't knock either game. Pool has some advantages, like I can play in my basement.
 
BRKNRUN said:
My opinion is that players that shoot in the mid to low 70's is a B+ player. Players that can shoot a 70 (par 72 course) would qualify as a (A) player in my book.. Players that shoot 65 would be a pro level player...(depending on the types of courses played to shoot 65)

What you have going for you (based on your post above) is "common sense" aka (course management) for some that is harder to learn than the actual swing.....

Same as in pool...(table management) can be one of the hardest things to master at pool

Really the truth is neither is more difficult overall or easier over all...They are very similar in some respects, but the mechanics (actual motion) of the full golf swing and pool stroke are so different that they really can't be compared...

I am pretty sure I know the original poster well enough to know that he was probably being a little sarcastic in his post...

Point of example that one can't be listed as harder than the other...It is no secret that the original poster is one of the best in the state of Arizona and probably a contender in any 9-ball event....I have not seen him play Golf in a while, but I would bet $$$ that he could not beat me at a round of golf on a championship level course...At the same time I am sure he would bet all the $$$ he had that he would beat me in a race to 10 ahead game of 9-ball......and you can't use the lack of practice argument, because I know for a fact that he has worn out the finish on a few clubs...and I have worn out many tips practicing on a table at my house....

My vote for best post on this topic so far. I can kinda make a comparison though because, well, I'm semi good at everything. I can get to a level that looks impressive to non players in almost any game, thinking or physical in a very very short period of time. But for people that know and play whatever sport or game well, i am just a B player. I bet at scrabble, chess, poker, gin, golf, bowling (ok i am really bad at this), golf, pool, running, jumping, or anything that requires thinking. But I never get to that TOP AAA level of being able to compete with the best, but i think i have a chance at this POOL thing, if i just play for a few more years. Generally i dedicate myself 100% to something, till i find out how difficult it is to get to a TOP AAA level, then start trying to perfect something else. I've stuck with pool longer than anything else, and plan on sticking with it forever. I think i love pool because of how my analytical/mathmatical brain works, and pool has a great combination, of thinking, strategy, and physical execution.
 
JPB said:
Both games are hard. I think golf is harder. All the precision, all the mental stuff, and more demanding in terms of physical ability. Golf really comprises 3 games. Full shots, wedges/chips/pitches, and putting. Each is like its own sport in some ways. But both are hard and I don't knock either game. Pool has some advantages, like I can play in my basement.


I agree that golf is quite a bit harder and you have to be extremely proficient in more areas with golf. However, I do think that when you get to a certain level of play at both, such as a very good road player or excellent shortstop in pool....or a top PGA club pro, top amateur, or mini-tour player...that the journey to top level professional play in both JUST BEGINS and they tend to get equally as difficult. The step up to the highest level in both is a quantum leap from the other level, even though you're able to beat about 98% of the total pool or golf population.
 
DaveK said:
Harvey Pennick was a fan of having raw beginners tee up their ball in the fairways. It's a lot easier to get the ball in the air, something that causes beginners problems. I also love your 'just about always guarantee', nice little oxymoron there.

Most golfers cannot 'get things worked out' , it's very hard to do by yourself. Some video equipment helps, but it's a lot easier to get the initial improvement under the eyes of an instructor/professional. Now if you take a long time (as opposed to your 'fairly short period of time'), one can figure out how to make a bad swing work to some degree, but it will still be a bad swing. The proper motion is not an intuitive one, so it is very hard to get right without additional feedback from someone knowledgeable. Translation : I think your crazy about the idea of how a person with a bad swing can improve.

A wise man once said "golf is not a game of perfect". I don't think pool is either (not that I am very wise, just ask my wife or kids ! ).

Dave

Again Agreed, to a point. Maybe its just me, but i have never taken lessons, and i did have a bad swing 150-200 yrd slice drives, and i didn't do much more than watch alotta golf on TV, catch all that instructional stuff on the Golf Channel, and i fixed my swing. And honestly, i dont think the instructional stuff on TV ever helped. I even downloaded a 2 hour ernie els instructional video that i still havent even watched. By myself, zero instruction other than that of lousy players who are always willing to offer a helping hand in making your swing worse. I say it about 10 times a month and I'll say it again. THERE IS NO BETTER WAY TO LEARN ANYTHING then playing THE INNER GAME. (inner game of tennis, inner game of golf) Full confidence, full agreement between SELF 1 and SELF 2, and guess what? SELF 2 will learn how to play without to much input from SELF 1. By playing the inner game, or using your SELF 2 or RIGHT BRAIN you can learn something way way faster than using your left brain and analytical thinking.
 
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drivermaker said:
I agree that golf is quite a bit harder and you have to be extremely proficient in more areas with golf. However, I do think that when you get to a certain level of play at both, such as a very good road player or excellent shortstop in pool....or a top PGA club pro, top amateur, or mini-tour player...that the journey to top level professional play in both JUST BEGINS and they tend to get equally as difficult. The step up to the highest level in both is a quantum leap from the other level, even though you're able to beat about 98% of the total pool or golf population.

I was waiting to see your response to this. Would you agree with me that a A player in golf is shooting par - +6 and that it takes a PRO to consistently shoot under 72? I just find it hard to believe that an A player in golf shoots under par all the time.
 
fxskater said:
I was waiting to see your response to this. Would you agree with me that a A player in golf is shooting par - +6 and that it takes a PRO to consistently shoot under 72? I just find it hard to believe that an A player in golf shoots under par all the time.


I have a little problem trying to apply an A through D rating system to golf that makes sense.

NOBODY shoots under par all the time, not even Tiger...Ernie...Vijay...or Phil. All you have to do is go to the guys that miss the cut after Friday's round on the PGA tour to see that...and they're the best in the country! Invariably, you'll see a few scores of 80 or higher in the first two rounds. A lot of it also has to do with the difficulty of the course set up or weather conditions.

This week is the PGA Championship, so look at the scores on Friday evening or Sat. morning of those that get cut. THERE WILL BE SOME 80's and these guys have proven themselves and are super players, which shows just how difficult golf can be. If you take a scratch amateur golfer at any course in the country, more than likely none would break 80 on a championship setup like they'll have. It's at the VERY WORST for the US Open. Brutal...just brutal!! For them to do something like it in pool it would be to make the pockets so narrow that only one ball fits in.

I think for there to be a comparison, it would have to be similar to a number of top pool professionals not being able to string together more than a six ball run in almost every set. Could that possibly happen? I don't think so.....
 
fxskater said:
Looking at my scorecard RIGHT NOW from that VERY VERY tough course here is my score:
Hole:___1__2__3__4__5__6__7__8__9_Front_10_11_12_13_14_15_16_17_18_back_total
Par:___5__4__3__4__4__5__4__4__3___36___4__4__5__4__3__4__3__4__8___36___72
Score:__9__6__3__5__4__5__6__5__3__46___4__6__5__4__3__5__5__3__8___43___89
www.hydemountain.com for more information.
I'm Not bragging here either. I am proud of this score on this course {QUOTE]


Nice to see you got par on that par 8 eighteenth hole. It must be the longest hole in the world. If you had scored a 4 on that hole what would that be called, I've heard of Eagles and double eagle or albatross, I guess it would be a triple Eagle or a double albatross.

(Just kidding, I know it was a misprint. I believe there is a professional course in Toronto that has something like a par 7 or par 8 though).

Wayne
 
wayne said:
fxskater said:
Looking at my scorecard RIGHT NOW from that VERY VERY tough course here is my score:
Hole:___1__2__3__4__5__6__7__8__9_Front_10_11_12_13_14_15_16_17_18_back_total
Par:___5__4__3__4__4__5__4__4__3___36___4__4__5__4__3__4__3__4__8___36___72
Score:__9__6__3__5__4__5__6__5__3__46___4__6__5__4__3__5__5__3__8___43___89
www.hydemountain.com for more information.
I'm Not bragging here either. I am proud of this score on this course {QUOTE]


Nice to see you got par on that par 8 eighteenth hole. It must be the longest hole in the world. If you had scored a 4 on that hole what would that be called, I've heard of Eagles and double eagle or albatross, I guess it would be a triple Eagle or a double albatross.

(Just kidding, I know it was a misprint. I believe there is a professional course in Toronto that has something like a par 7 or par 8 though).

Wayne
YOU BASTARD, HOW DARE YOU!!! j/k thanks for catching my goof. It was a par 5.
 
drivermaker said:
I have a little problem trying to apply an A through D rating system to golf that makes sense.

NOBODY shoots under par all the time, not even Tiger...Ernie...Vijay...or Phil. All you have to do is go to the guys that miss the cut after Friday's round on the PGA tour to see that...and they're the best in the country! Invariably, you'll see a few scores of 80 or higher in the first two rounds. A lot of it also has to do with the difficulty of the course set up or weather conditions.

This week is the PGA Championship, so look at the scores on Friday evening or Sat. morning of those that get cut. THERE WILL BE SOME 80's and these guys have proven themselves and are super players, which shows just how difficult golf can be. If you take a scratch amateur golfer at any course in the country, more than likely none would break 80 on a championship setup like they'll have. It's at the VERY WORST for the US Open. Brutal...just brutal!! For them to do something like it in pool it would be to make the pockets so narrow that only one ball fits in.

I think for there to be a comparison, it would have to be similar to a number of top pool professionals not being able to string together more than a six ball run in almost every set. Could that possibly happen? I don't think so.....

I agree 100%. But for the sake of making a comparison i think my post is more accurate than saying an A player would shoot 70-72.

The reason i say that is that if you look at all the players on tour, i dont think even one of them has thier average round stat under 69, it might even be 70.
I know Tiger's average was somewhere around 69.

Edit: Tigers average round is 68.82.
 
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drivermaker said:
I agree that golf is quite a bit harder and you have to be extremely proficient in more areas with golf. However, I do think that when you get to a certain level of play at both, such as a very good road player or excellent shortstop in pool....or a top PGA club pro, top amateur, or mini-tour player...that the journey to top level professional play in both JUST BEGINS and they tend to get equally as difficult. The step up to the highest level in both is a quantum leap from the other level, even though you're able to beat about 98% of the total pool or golf population.


Yeah, I agree with this. People really don't know how well the guys on tour play. And that goes for the very top pool players too. To be at the very top level of any game is something else really.
 
fxskater said:
I agree 100%. But for the sake of making a comparison i think my post is more accurate than saying an A player would shoot 70-72.

The reason i say that is that if you look at all the players on tour, i dont think even one of them has an Average Round under 69, it might even be 70.
I know Tiger's average was somewhere around 69.

Those scores are shot on a PGA set up course. You would need to probably subtract 3 or 4 strokes from that score average for the joe public courses that 98% of the world plays on....(that would make Tiger's 69 a 65...or a 70 a 66)

Even if its the exact same course...The Course is made much harder for a PGA event...Fairways Tighter/ Rough Deeper/ Greens like stone and near death/ Areas around hazards "shaved" to allow your ball easy access into the hazard.....etc. etc.....

Most 12+ handicapps would have a tough time legally finishing a PGA set up course.
 
Yes i realize the difficulty of a PGA setup, but its not as dramatic as your making it, in every tournament. There are a few that are setup incredibly difficult, that would add maybe 10 strokes to your game, compared to playing the same course not setup for the PGA. But i would say most of them are not set up that much more difficult, maybe 1 or 2 strokes, these are the courses that you see new winners on. The US Open has to be the absolute most difficult setup. You'll even hear guys say that its unfair and setup to embarrass the players.
 
fxskater said:
Yes i realize the difficulty of a PGA setup, but its not as dramatic as your making it, in every tournament. There are a few that are setup incredibly difficult, that would add maybe 10 strokes to your game, compared to playing the same course not setup for the PGA. But i would say most of them are not set up that much more difficult, maybe 1 or 2 strokes, these are the courses that you see new winners on. The US Open has to be the absolute most difficult setup. You'll even hear guys say that its unfair and setup to embarrass the players.

Think about this...You can make a course 1 or 2 strokes harder just by pin placement alone...Now add to that that most ameature players would be very challenged to hit a shot in to a green from 150 yards in and have the ball actually stay anywhere near where it landed on a PGA set up course......Trust me when I tell you that you have no idea how hard and fast these greens are.....
 
I don't play golf, so excuse my ignorance, but what about comparing the top skill levels using an accu-stats type rating. A top pool player will easily beat the 10-ball ghost, on very tight tables. I don't know how many more balls Efren could put up and still win. Beating the 9-ball ghost requires basically a 900 accu-stats rating. The shots may be easier but you can't win without making all the balls and getting shape constantly. More balls added greatly increases the difficulty, even though the rating goes up slowly from there. Tiger can skip strokes by hitting the ball further. You can't do that in pool, skip the 5 because you hit the 4 so well.

Number of racks run is so dependent upon the rack that it's not really comparable to anything. However I was told by a friend of Earls that he ran over 20 racks of 9-ball (no ghost) many years ago, before perfect racks.

unknownpro
 
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