trustyrusty said:The day I shoot a 54 (par 72), I will gladly withdraw the golf is tougher statement.
What, 18 birdies and no eagles...you dont like the par 5's????
What sport is harder, Billiards or Golf?
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What, 18 birdies and no eagles...you dont like the par 5's????
I'm having a hard time comparing the two.
Golf is a game with mass appeal and mass participation. Consequently, players vary considerably in their skill levels. From my experience, I'd have to say that the majority of golfers are pretty lousy - they can't break a hundred and they've never put a good swing on the ball. Yet, they keep playing. An occasional par or birdie or good drive seems to satisfy them. Their counterparts in the pool room can't run three balls and have never put a good stroke on the cue ball. These people are not dedicated to pool the same way the duffer is dedicated to golf. Maybe it's the fact that the duffer stinks in isolation as he wanders around the course with three of his buddies who most likely play as badly as he does while the guy who stinks at pool has to exhibit his lack of skill openly in front of everyone in the pool room.
Anyway, that being said, I tend to think that at the highest level pool is harder. There's just so much going on, shots to make, position to play, strategies to apply - It's not just putting the balls in the hole.
Golf is a game with mass appeal and mass participation. Consequently, players vary considerably in their skill levels. From my experience, I'd have to say that the majority of golfers are pretty lousy - they can't break a hundred and they've never put a good swing on the ball. Yet, they keep playing. An occasional par or birdie or good drive seems to satisfy them. Their counterparts in the pool room can't run three balls and have never put a good stroke on the cue ball. These people are not dedicated to pool the same way the duffer is dedicated to golf. Maybe it's the fact that the duffer stinks in isolation as he wanders around the course with three of his buddies who most likely play as badly as he does while the guy who stinks at pool has to exhibit his lack of skill openly in front of everyone in the pool room.
Anyway, that being said, I tend to think that at the highest level pool is harder. There's just so much going on, shots to make, position to play, strategies to apply - It's not just putting the balls in the hole.
shanesinnott said:What, 18 birdies and no eagles...you dont like the par 5's????
Love par fives!!!!
So, ok, 4 eagles, and mix in 4 pars somewhere.....don't wanna be too greedy.I have never woke up and discovered that somehow while sleeping I had lost the ability to draw the ball in pool....LOL...on the other hand in golf I get to hit my mistakes and try to correct the mistake, in pool the other guy hits my mistakes, I may not get another shot....so I think the physical game of golf is more difficult but the mental game of pool is toughter to handle.
They both have there own challenges, with golf you are only hitting a single ball toward a target (as opposed to pool, where your hitting a ball into another ball, into a target)...but in Golf you are battling the elements and extreme distance. Pool is about finesse, speed control and accuracy.
As far as it being a sport, it is funny cause golf gets a lot of ribbing about that same thing. This topic irks me, cause a sport to me is any contest that involves physical skill. (ie: billiards~yes, chess~no) How can anyone say there is no physical skill involved in pool? Only some one who does not play it could say this.
=(
As far as it being a sport, it is funny cause golf gets a lot of ribbing about that same thing. This topic irks me, cause a sport to me is any contest that involves physical skill. (ie: billiards~yes, chess~no) How can anyone say there is no physical skill involved in pool? Only some one who does not play it could say this.
=(
acedotcom said:
Those golfers are not in isolation....they can end up playing 3 different holes at once. Sorry, I play early on weekends (between 5:30 - 6 am teetimes) just to avoid the hackers. When I do get out for the occasional afternoon - early evening round, I have to play 2 or 3 balls because of the pace of play. Why anyone would want to get on a course to shoot in the one-teens is beyond me. I can understand guy having a few pops and banging balls at the corner bar, but you usually don't see bangers on the 9 footers in a poolhall (at least I don't).
I think the difficulty is in the stroke. A pool stroke, on average, is 6" and on a flat plane.
Golf is a rotational stroke of about 270 degrees, 30" from your hands.
For me, the answer is golf. I play both and I know that I can throw a golf club farther than a pool cue by far.... j/k
Golf is a rotational stroke of about 270 degrees, 30" from your hands.
For me, the answer is golf. I play both and I know that I can throw a golf club farther than a pool cue by far.... j/k
Golf, without a doubt. So many more moving parts, feel, etc. So many more places to dog your swing and choke... with obstructions, water, trees and sand on the other end if you do (unlike pool). Every course is different from the next, and each course is different from day-to-day given the conditions.
In pool, you always have a perfect lie. There's no wind. You're never more than 10' from your target. Try hitting the cue ball out of 5" rough. Nothing like having to feel-flop a ball over a bunker with only a foot or two landing area in order to save a par when people are staring at you.
For everyone who thinks pool is harder, play a REAL course like Bay Hill or Bethpage and report back to us. No matter what your speed is, make sure you bring a dozen balls. Good thing you only need 1 CB in pool! Saves a lot of $$$$.
In pool, you always have a perfect lie. There's no wind. You're never more than 10' from your target. Try hitting the cue ball out of 5" rough. Nothing like having to feel-flop a ball over a bunker with only a foot or two landing area in order to save a par when people are staring at you.
For everyone who thinks pool is harder, play a REAL course like Bay Hill or Bethpage and report back to us. No matter what your speed is, make sure you bring a dozen balls. Good thing you only need 1 CB in pool! Saves a lot of $$$$.
SpiderWebComm said:
While I have not played Bay Hill or Bethpage, I did play the TPC Sawgrass stadium course (right after the 2004 TPC tourney) from the tips. At the time I was a 3.4 cap. I shot a nice lil 86, and shoulda been much worse (pulled some up and downs outta my butt). I did stick my my teeshot on 17 (island green) to 12 feet....sure I missed the putt, but EASY par
I've played on crappy tables with crappy cloth, and rails, but the difference in local $15 muni, and say, Carnoustie, or Pebble Beach etc....are VAST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
hi
well i must chime in here.first of all i think to have an opinion that carrys any weight i think you should have played golf and pool both.here is the way i look at it.to play pool say like mike sigel in his prime or vijay singh at golf will be equally as hard and take as much work and talent.now to play golf like crap and play pool like crap is easy, but if someone thinks becoming world class at either game is easier than the other i think they are way off.now you might be thinking well john you play pro pool what do you know about golf.your right im by no means world class at golf .i did play many years on a high school and a college team well before i knew anything about pool and believe me the road to becomming great at either game is extremely tough.i will tell you this though my girlfriend and i play golf and she plays pool now to and after playing golf about 15 times she has the object of the game down hit the ball on the green and in the hole.after playing pool a few hundred games she has no idea what she is doing as far as decision making goes not to mention executing that decision. the things you have to know to play say world golf are many and executing them are insanely tough.but the things you have to know to play world class 9ball,14.1,1hole etc are many many more . let me tell you a story i played sawgrass last year and on the first hole the caddy asked me what i did and i told him pool .well he says thats cool and that vijay singh plays great pool and that he has been at his house and seen him play pool and he could be pro.of course i laughed and told him he has no chance playing me pool and that i would be more than happy to play him a hole of golf and a game of 8ball for money.now this guy has caddied on the pga tour etc so when he told me he could line that up because he sees vijay every other day as he works at sawgrass etc i kind of became irratated with him.i thought wow this guy thinks vijay in his spare time can beat me at something that i do all the time ,well anyway i told him to come down to bankshot billiards because i was in town for a pro 9ball tourney and he could watch me play and then see if he liked vijay to beat anyone in the field playing pool.well anyway he showed up and watched a few of my matches and came up and laughed and told me you are right vijay has no chance. but it just shows that people who play golf think pool is easier and people who play pool think golf is easier.well i play both and trust me they are just as hard as the other to play world class.
well i must chime in here.first of all i think to have an opinion that carrys any weight i think you should have played golf and pool both.here is the way i look at it.to play pool say like mike sigel in his prime or vijay singh at golf will be equally as hard and take as much work and talent.now to play golf like crap and play pool like crap is easy, but if someone thinks becoming world class at either game is easier than the other i think they are way off.now you might be thinking well john you play pro pool what do you know about golf.your right im by no means world class at golf .i did play many years on a high school and a college team well before i knew anything about pool and believe me the road to becomming great at either game is extremely tough.i will tell you this though my girlfriend and i play golf and she plays pool now to and after playing golf about 15 times she has the object of the game down hit the ball on the green and in the hole.after playing pool a few hundred games she has no idea what she is doing as far as decision making goes not to mention executing that decision. the things you have to know to play say world golf are many and executing them are insanely tough.but the things you have to know to play world class 9ball,14.1,1hole etc are many many more . let me tell you a story i played sawgrass last year and on the first hole the caddy asked me what i did and i told him pool .well he says thats cool and that vijay singh plays great pool and that he has been at his house and seen him play pool and he could be pro.of course i laughed and told him he has no chance playing me pool and that i would be more than happy to play him a hole of golf and a game of 8ball for money.now this guy has caddied on the pga tour etc so when he told me he could line that up because he sees vijay every other day as he works at sawgrass etc i kind of became irratated with him.i thought wow this guy thinks vijay in his spare time can beat me at something that i do all the time ,well anyway i told him to come down to bankshot billiards because i was in town for a pro 9ball tourney and he could watch me play and then see if he liked vijay to beat anyone in the field playing pool.well anyway he showed up and watched a few of my matches and came up and laughed and told me you are right vijay has no chance. but it just shows that people who play golf think pool is easier and people who play pool think golf is easier.well i play both and trust me they are just as hard as the other to play world class.
john schmidt said:
I noticed you conveniently left out how good a golfer you are now
Lost any clubs in the lake lately?
For the record, I can't beat John at golf or pool (but I still think Golf is the tougher game)
john schmidt said:
That's a funny story. I'd love to see you tell Vijay to get up and bet. You can definitely par a random hole and there's no way he's beating you at a game of 8-ball. If his hair was longer, he'd be pulling it out for sure.
Nice scenario John Schmidt... I was an Assistant Professional at Colonial Country Club in Ft. Worth Texas. Playing at Colonial was tough, each & every time. Add in some adverse weather & times got tougher.
I was an All-Star baseball Catcher in my High School years. These two accomplishments speak for my athletic abilities as a young man.
In my younger days, I could also play great Snooker. I've ran 100 points more than several times, in my day.
The two games, Golf & Billiards, are the toughest sports I know, much harder to become a Master, than Baseball, Football or Basketball (which require more brawn than brains JMHO).
Which is tougher physically to play? Golf is, because you are outside in the heat & you have to walk 7200 yards while swinging your stick.
Which is harder to play & Master physically or mentally, I'll say Billiards. 10 hours in a tough Tournament can take the starch right out of a man.
In the final analysis, one small error in Billiards can be the beginning of your opponent's rise to Victory. Making an error in Golf does penalize you, but it doesn't add to your opponent's ease of winning.
Good Luck playing either sport, they are both satisfying & rewarding to play. Now, if we can just get a Professional Pocket Billiards Tour started.
I was an All-Star baseball Catcher in my High School years. These two accomplishments speak for my athletic abilities as a young man.
In my younger days, I could also play great Snooker. I've ran 100 points more than several times, in my day.
The two games, Golf & Billiards, are the toughest sports I know, much harder to become a Master, than Baseball, Football or Basketball (which require more brawn than brains JMHO).
Which is tougher physically to play? Golf is, because you are outside in the heat & you have to walk 7200 yards while swinging your stick.
Which is harder to play & Master physically or mentally, I'll say Billiards. 10 hours in a tough Tournament can take the starch right out of a man.
In the final analysis, one small error in Billiards can be the beginning of your opponent's rise to Victory. Making an error in Golf does penalize you, but it doesn't add to your opponent's ease of winning.
Good Luck playing either sport, they are both satisfying & rewarding to play. Now, if we can just get a Professional Pocket Billiards Tour started.
poolchic said:
Now we're talking tough ... which of course both golf and pool would be, if they were played on ice
I believe that developing and maintaining a good golf swing is more difficult than developing and maintaining a good pool stroke. There are more shots to learn in golf, imo, but more strategy to learn in pool. Overall I'd have to say golf is a more difficult game to play proficiently. I've been trying to master both, on and off, for many many years, and my pool game is WAY better than my golf game on any given day.
As far as the top of the game, sure, it's extremely difficult (impossible for most) to master either game, and those who have mastered either deserve our respect for their accomplishments. Having said that, I thought the question was about the masses, not the elite.
Dave
Golf is harder....so many variables, huge degree of difficulty, more facets to the swing....but both sports are great....
Note, I'm a decent pool player and a 13 handicap in golf, which is basically a decent golfer, so this is somewhat unbiased....
Note, I'm a decent pool player and a 13 handicap in golf, which is basically a decent golfer, so this is somewhat unbiased....
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cincyman
Banned
Well i am a 7 handicap golfer and i play pool about the 7 under 2nd tier pros so i believe i am in about the top 99% percent of the population and i honestly believe there are more variables in golf for it to be harder but anything is going to be hard that you have never done. And also i am assuming your interest level is the same in both because that makes a huge difference also.
I am just saying i play both pretty good and i think golf is going to be the harder game to "master". I might and have beat world champions in a race to 9 or 7 but i am not going to beat Tiger Woods 18 holes or even 9 holes for that matter
I am just saying i play both pretty good and i think golf is going to be the harder game to "master". I might and have beat world champions in a race to 9 or 7 but i am not going to beat Tiger Woods 18 holes or even 9 holes for that matter
SpiderWebComm said:
I don't know anything about Vijay's pool but I can think of at least three European Tour Pros who are well capable of breaking and running one rack of pool and several Asian Tour pros who can do better than that. One European Seniors Tour player who I've played with has definitely had a century break at snooker.
If you are saying that John can par/birdie one hole (which of course he can) but that Vijay can't win one frame of 8 ball you may be making an assumption too far. He may well for example be good enough to break and run one rack which would render how good his opponent is somewhat irrelevant in the same way as John's parring ability does in the reverse scenario
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I'm going to make a statement right here...
Take any professional golfer in the PGA tour and have him take up pool seriously. I'm pretty sure that 99% of them would be at least a C player after one year's worth of dedicated practice and proper instruction in pool. I'd also be willing to bet that maybe even half of them would be a B player or better.
Now, take any professional pool player and have him take up golf seriously. I wouldn't be willing to bet that half of them would be an 18 handicap, or even a 36 handicap, after a year's worth of practice and proper instruction in golf.
Bottom line is that golf demands as much accuracy and feel as pool (being generous towards pool), but so much more coordination and agility.
Take any professional golfer in the PGA tour and have him take up pool seriously. I'm pretty sure that 99% of them would be at least a C player after one year's worth of dedicated practice and proper instruction in pool. I'd also be willing to bet that maybe even half of them would be a B player or better.
Now, take any professional pool player and have him take up golf seriously. I wouldn't be willing to bet that half of them would be an 18 handicap, or even a 36 handicap, after a year's worth of practice and proper instruction in golf.
Bottom line is that golf demands as much accuracy and feel as pool (being generous towards pool), but so much more coordination and agility.
john schmidt said:
You mean to tell me that you had a chance to play Vijay pool for cash and blew your cover? My god man what were you thinking? Who knows what kind of cash you could have won.....lol! I'm putting you on my list for most honest pool player ever!