local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

I don't think poker is a sport

By Scott Adamson
Sunday, July 15, 2007

Remember when you were in school and your mom would keep you home because you were sick, then when you returned you were behind on your assignments?

I ask because I’m obviously behind on my assignments.

I must’ve missed the day when poker became a sport.

You can scroll through Associated Press or go to traditional sports Web sites, and you’ll quickly find out all you need to know about the World Series of Poker.

For example, the event pays out $59.8 million, and the grand prize winner will rake in an impressive $8.25 million.

By the way ESPN has been showing most of the action, and if you want to see the finals, which are set for Tuesday, you can.

They’ll be broadcast on ESPN pay-per-view.

Pay-per-view!

This raises so many questions I have no idea where to begin.

First of all, these people are playing cards. They are not running complex pass routes or using their hand/eye coordination to hit a baseball or pulling up and smoothly releasing a shot that will send a basketball through a small cylinder from 22 feet away.

They are playing cards.

It has always been my philosophy — and perhaps it’s just me — that if you can sit at a table while drinking beer and eating Cheetos, you are not participating in a sport.

You are merely playing a game.

If the World Series of Poker is a sport, then so is Monopoly, Yahtzee, UNO, Chutes and Ladders, Clue, Candyland, etc.

In fact, if the World Series of Poker is a sport then so is playing video games.

And since video gaming is a sport I’m a bit upset that ESPN didn’t televise one of my recent accomplishments.

NCAA Football 2007 has a create-a-team feature, so through the magic of fantasy and technology I became head coach and puppet master of the Anderson University Trojans Division 1-A football team.

During the 2017 season the club finished 13-0 and defeated Michigan State 41-20 in the Rose Bowl.

Why was this not reported?

And where is my share of the $59.8 million?

Even more absurd that poker would be considered a sport is that it’s on TV.

What’s there to watch?

Dude looks at a card, dude puts card on a table, dude eats a Cheeto.

That’s not sports — that’s a 15-minute break at work.

Obviously someone cares or ESPN wouldn’t show it. And sadly, apparently there are people who will actually pay to watch this stuff on TV because it wouldn’t be offered on pay-per-view unless the “worldwide leader in non-sports coverage” thought it could make a buck.

I consider myself to be a man of the people and will always make a concerted effort to serve you, the reader.

However if you, the reader, think poker is a sport, we’re just going to have to agree to disagree.

But I’ll be glad to discuss the issue over a beer and bag of Cheetos.

I’ll even bring the cards.

http://www.independentmail.com/news/...k-poker-sport/

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

what a hair raising article
totally shatters core beliefs and values
and yes, obviously, it will be taken off of espn now

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

He needs a hug.




But many things can be a sport. Video-games defidently can be a sport if you watch G4 TV and see how damn seriously those players play it.


Some people believe a sport must have some physically demanding aspect to it, others believe it can be any type of competition.

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

[ QUOTE ]
He needs a hug.




But many things can be a sport. Video-games defidently can be a sport if you watch G4 TV and see how damn seriously those players play it.


Some people believe a sport must have some physically demanding aspect to it, others believe it can be any type of competition.

[/ QUOTE ]

true enough. Even look at golf most of them are not really athletic (some not at all really). But, they have technique and so forth that make them better, or NASCAR...

And, I wouldn't call poker a sport, but with all the other crap on ESPN not like it matters

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

Poker isn't a sport and I doubt many, if any, of it's participants that would argue that it is a sport. However it is a competition and the viewship of this competition is the same as sports, thus it's place on ESPN's schedule.

This sort of article is the equivalent to the comedic 'why do we park on driveways and drive on parkways'. It's simplistic and unoriginal and nothing more than a columnist trying to fill inches.

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

Not impressive.

Ice skating is a sport. Diving is a sport. Gymnastics is a sport. They even tried a few years ago to get ballroom dancing into the Olympics. It's not a sport if you ever hear the words, "we're waiting on the judges decision." At least with poker, you aren't going to hear a controversy over the Russian judging.

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

I wanted to hear a few other opinions before I said anything. I pretty much feel the exact same. I just keep flashing back to the george carlin routine on sports.

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

[ QUOTE ]
I don't think poker is a sport

By Scott Adamson
Sunday, July 15, 2007



[/ QUOTE ]


I don't think Scott Adamson has any friends
By dwf76
Monday, July 16, 2007

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

[ QUOTE ]
Not impressive.

It's not a sport if you ever hear the words, "we're waiting on the judges decision."

[/ QUOTE ]

?

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

[ QUOTE ]
what a hair raising article
totally shatters core beliefs and values
and yes, obviously, it will be taken off of espn now

[/ QUOTE ]

succinct and eloquent to the point of elegance.

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

I don't have a definition of sport vs. game vs. competition. I think there are significant gray areas. That said, let me put a few stakes in the ground and see how people feel about them. Feel free to amend these and/or and your own.

1. Cablecasting by ESPN is neither a sufficient nor necessary condition for an activity to be considered a sport.

2. Athlete is from the greek root Athlon (prize) and designated someone who competes for a prize. This root suggests a broad baseline definition of a sport. However, business professionals who compete for bonuses might fall into this broad definition and are not, in my view, athletes.

3. Athletic competition takes one of two general forms: a)precise manipulation of physical objects: think ball games; and b) precise physical manipulation of one's own body: think racing events, jumping events and things like figure skating, etc.

4. An argument could be made that chess and poker are physically demanding. But is that sufficient to satisfy the athlete test? How about the sport test?

5. Must sporting be configured such that winners are determined solely by participants without relying on judging? Who crosses the finish line, who scores the most points? Versus who got the best scores from the judges? Where does that leave figure skating which clearly meets several athletic categories.

5. What is the value of drawing a line between sport, athletics and any competition?

6. Is timeframe a factor to consider? That is discreet periods of competition with definite beginnings and ends? Are Steve Jobs and Bill Gates involved in a sports competition?

8. Is a sport simply an event that experienced gamblers would be willing to wager on? Ruling out, therefore, pro wrestling, but ruling in almost any aleatory event?

Anyway, just some thoughts. As I said above, I'm skeptical that a universal definition can be found to which everyone will agree, but the process of defining the parameters may be enjoyable, thought-provoking and worthwhile.

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

Its old, but still true today:

Sport of Kings

gl

bdd

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

not a sport

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

[ QUOTE ]
It's not a sport if you ever hear the words, "we're waiting on the judges decision."

[/ QUOTE ]

Do you realize how many sports this would disqualify?

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
It's not a sport if you ever hear the words, "we're waiting on the judges decision."

[/ QUOTE ]

Do you realize how many sports this would disqualify?

[/ QUOTE ]

They need an umpire to call balls vs strikes in baseball even.

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

I don't think it's a sport either and it's ridiculous to call it one.

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

Not a sport obviously but I'm not really bothered by ESPN showing it because as a game it works okay into their programming (a few less reruns though please).

When ESPN did the Poker-drama Tilt my reaction was more, "WTF? Why is ESPN doing a drama TV show about poker?"
And I knew some sports-fans but non-poker-fans who were even more WTF about it (and this was before it had even started when we would get to see how truly bad the show itself was).


The article reminds me of 2003-ish when poker was first getting more time on TV via the hole-card cams, the WPT and the expanded WSOP coverage on ESPN.
I was on an e-mail list-serv for minor-league and small-college sports-broadcasters and one guy wrote a long rant about having just seen "Poker on TV" and he thought it was bizarre especially since he apparently didn't even know how to play (I assume he was watching WPT).
Stuff like, "Can you believe this? Showing poker on TV. One guy would push his chips in and then the other guy would do the same and then they would have a bunch of cards on the table and one of them was somehow declared the winner.
I don't even know what to call the announcers. Is he a play-by-play announcer or should I call him a card-by-card announcer?"

Obviously things have changed a bit since then and practically anyone and everyone is familiar with poker on TV and doesn't think it's strange in the least.
Still doesn't make it a sport though.

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

[ QUOTE ]
Not a sport obviously but I'm not really bothered by ESPN showing it because as a game it works okay into their programming (a few less reruns though please).

When ESPN did the Poker-drama Tilt my reaction was more, "WTF? Why is ESPN doing a drama TV show about poker?"
And I knew some sports-fans but non-poker-fans who were even more WTF about it (and this was before it had even started when we would get to see how truly bad the show itself was).


The article reminds me of 2003-ish when poker was first getting more time on TV via the hole-card cams, the WPT and the expanded WSOP coverage on ESPN.
I was on an e-mail list-serv for minor-league and small-college sports-broadcasters and one guy wrote a long rant about having just seen "Poker on TV" and he thought it was bizarre especially since he apparently didn't even know how to play (I assume he was watching WPT).
Stuff like, "Can you believe this? Showing poker on TV. One guy would push his chips in and then the other guy would do the same and then they would have a bunch of cards on the table and one of them was somehow declared the winner.
I don't even know what to call the announcers. Is he a play-by-play announcer or should I call him a card-by-card announcer?"

Obviously things have changed a bit since then and practically anyone and everyone is familiar with poker on TV and doesn't think it's strange in the least.
Still doesn't make it a sport though.

[/ QUOTE ]

agreed. ESPN= Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, so just b/c ESPN gives an event a slot does not make that event a sport. poker is a great game but it's not a sport.

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

i have had a number of arguments over whether games such as poker and chess are sports and point #4 always comes up. in my mind saying poker/chess are physically demanding does not satisfy the requisite of physical exertion b/c any activity that involves a great degree of concentration can be physically demanding. in order for something to qualify as a sport i believe that any resulting physical exertion needs to be the result of non-standard physical activity.

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

Having been heavily involved in Chess, specifically the recognition of Chess as a sport by the International Olympic Committee (along with Bridge), I found that there is a very different definition of sport based on monther tongue. For the native English speakers and Scandinavia, "sport" really refers specifically to athletic competition, which chess/bridge/poker certainly is not one.

Of course, in Eastern Europe, Asia, Africa and South and Central America, chess has been well embraced as a sport, and has even been a medal event in the IOC's Asian Games.

Chess is definitely a sport (IOC says so), but it is not an athletic competition, which is what "sport" is taken to mean in the USA. I would say the same goes for poker.

[As an aside, it's certainly more of a sport than synchronized swimming and curling.]

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

yeah, the issue is essentially semantic. also, def agree w/sync swimming (b/c of the subjective scoring system), but i'm on the fence w/curling.

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

ESPN shows the national spelling bee.
Get over it.

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

Yeah, the WSOP is taking up valuable ESPN air time that they could be using to air more lame whose now segments, NFL shows that amount to people taking random guesses at the next season, and people eating and throwing up hot dogs.

Whats this guys point?

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

[ QUOTE ]
Dude looks at a card, dude puts card on a table, dude eats a Cheeto.


[/ QUOTE ]

Sounds like 2 sports at the same time.

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

One of the worst openings to an article I've ever seen. My god.

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

[ QUOTE ]
also, def agree w/sync swimming (b/c of the subjective scoring system)

[/ QUOTE ]


- gymnastics
- figure-skating
- diving
- BOXING

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

[ QUOTE ]
Yeah, the WSOP is taking up valuable ESPN air time that they could be using to air more lame whose now segments, NFL shows that amount to people taking random guesses at the next season, and people eating and throwing up hot dogs.


[/ QUOTE ]


All those other extraneous programs bug me also.
When they COULD be showing actual sports that people care about and are interested in seeing.

Poker on TV is definitely preferrable to Who's Now or Hot Dog Eating.
But I'd rather be watching an actual baseball game or something.
Or even professional lacrosse.

Back in the day ESPN used to show Canadian Football League as well as Australian Rules Football games in their entirety among other sports.
Man, that Aussie football stuff was AWESOME!
Go Magpies! Beat the Kangaroos!!!!

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

doesn't mean it's not true

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
I don't think poker is a sport

By Scott Adamson
Sunday, July 15, 2007



[/ QUOTE ]


I don't think Scott Adamson has any friends
By dwf76
Monday, July 16, 2007

[/ QUOTE ]

I lol'ed.

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

(E)ntertainment and (S)ports (P)rogramming (N)etwork

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

Why did he even write that article? I don't get it.

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

[ QUOTE ]
ESPN shows the national spelling bee.
Get over it.

[/ QUOTE ]

QFT

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

[ QUOTE ]
Why did he even write that article? I don't get it.

[/ QUOTE ]

because he's a morAn

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

[ QUOTE ]
(E)ntertainment and (S)ports (P)rogramming (N)etwork

[/ QUOTE ]


The E for entertainment argument bugs me.

Even though they still have the 'entertainment' part it's pretty much viewed as the 24-hour sports network. Screw what the letters stand for.
They should not have done that stupid Tilt drama and they shouldn't be doing a lot of their other ridiculous 'entertainment' stuff.

just because 'entertainment' is in their title doesn't mean they should just show whatever they want.
Hell, they could buy up the re-runs of the Sopranos as are currently shown on A&E (Arts and Entertainement) and then point to the 'E' in ESPN and try to justify it.

They could even have 21 hours of Seinfeld re-runs and then show 1 baseball game and say, "Hey, the E for entertainment comes before the S in sports. What's the problem?"

But that would be stupid because people who watch ESPN want to watch sports and they have marketed themselves as a 24-hour sports network.

Also -
Back in the early 80's or so I'm pretty sure they used to have business-programming on from 6a-9a I think.
This was before CNBC or Bloomberg television.

So instead of your morning-dose of SportsCenter reruns they would have two guys chatting about the markets.

And obviously that doesn't really qualify as either 'entertainment' or 'sports'.

Am I the only one that remembers when they did this? I was only 11 or 12 I think so my memory about it might be a bit fuzzy. But I'm pretty sure they did this.

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

Microbob,

MTV doesn't show very many music videos anymore. Does that grind your gears?

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
also, def agree w/sync swimming (b/c of the subjective scoring system)

[/ QUOTE ]


- gymnastics
- figure-skating
- diving
- BOXING

[/ QUOTE ]

Boxing doesn't fit with the other 3. In the first 3, judges make the decision of the winner each and every time. In boxing, fighters frequently win by knockout, no judging needed.

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
also, def agree w/sync swimming (b/c of the subjective scoring system)

[/ QUOTE ]


- gymnastics
- figure-skating
- diving
- BOXING

[/ QUOTE ]

Boxing doesn't fit with the other 3. In the first 3, judges make the decision of the winner each and every time. In boxing, fighters frequently win by knockout, no judging needed.

[/ QUOTE ]

yep. you don't have to have a judge for a boxing match to be decided, it's just more humane.

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

sponger - I definitely miss the older MTV.
But that's pretty cliche to say, "hey, remember when Music Television actually played...you know....music?!?!"

Whatever, I've finally gotten over it. If they want to show the most ridiculous reality show they can dream up and enough people actually watch it then go for it.


velocity - Boxing fits in enough times to be included imo.
For those fights you have 3 judges pretty much saying, "I think this guy boxed better" and then some other guy saying, "Well, I think the other guy boxed better."

It's the same as if they had no overtime in many of the traditional team sports and just had 3 judges decide which team 'played better' and thus was more deserving of the win even if it was a 0-0 tie in soccer or hockey or something.

Also, some of the KO's are TKO's, right?
This is pretty much the ref saying, "Okay, this guy has had enough so I now declare him the loser."
not much of a boxing fan so not sure how common this is.


In gymnastics and diving and so forth they have 'degree of difficulty' already established on some of the moves I think.
They pretty much already know that if he lands such-and-such move without bouncing after landing or whatever that it will be worth a 10 or a 9.8 or whatever.
That's the impression I get from the announcers at least but, again, I don't watch these sports very much.

Anyway, I really don't think the gymnastics scoring is that much more subjective than boxing when it goes to a decision.

At the non-championship or amateur/olympic level don't they have a lot of 3 round bouts that are frequently decided by the judges?

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

What is sad is this guy got paid to write this.

No, poker is not a sport. Where is my money?

Re: local article--poker isnt a sport--near clemson SC
 

[ QUOTE ]
And since video gaming is a sport I’m a bit upset that ESPN didn’t televise one of my recent accomplishments.


[/ QUOTE ]

ESPN does televise video games. http://sports.espn.go.com/videogames...ory?id=2686068
What this D-Bag doesnt understand is that ESPN will televise ANYTHING that is competitive and will get ratings, it doesnt have to be a sport. and No [censored] they wont televise your create a school in NCAA 07 ...... Because no one cares. but if you can compete in Madden against the best in the world u can be on ESPN.

OBV poker and video games are not a sport.... they are VERY competitive games that are interesting to the public. this was just a terribly written article with an irrelevant point