Poker a Sport?

[MicroBob]

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Anything that does not guarantee victory to the best "participant" is most certainly NOT a sport.


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i don't see what you mean here at all....
in almost every sport there is a certain element of luck involved.

almost everyone would agree that the New York Yankees are a better team than the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. but when they play a game there certainly is no 'guarantee' that the Yankees will win.

what's more, the Yankees can play a 'better' game and still lose....the ump makes a bad call, or Tampa Bay hits a zillion little broken-bat dinkers that fall in for hits while the Yankees hit nothing but bullets that go for outs.


i dont know why the best participant has to be guaranteed a victory.....if this were true i doubt any of us would watch that much sports.

[ArchAngel71857]

Anything that does not guarantee victory to the best "participant" is most certainly NOT a sport.

I guess there are no sports then.

-AA

[OJSimpson]

Ahhh, one of the great debates to have, "to be or not to be... a sport." Someone posted that this is one of the great bar debates, and they are right about that. Me and the friends have often debated the sporting merit of things like ice skating, cheerleading, dancing, etc.. Here's my take.

Just because something is on ESPN does not make it a sport. Poker, although one of the most exciting and fun things to play, is in absolutely no way a sport. Break it down to its simplest form and it is just another card game that people wager money on. No different than Bridge, War, Uno, or even Blackjack. The exitement comes from the wagering of your money against another persons and the risk involved in potentially losing yours.

It is a game, point blank. There is no physical committment whatsoever, other than playing long hours and getting tired. But if I played monopoly for 15 hours straight through the night, I would get just as tired as when I play poker.

ESPN puts it on TV not because it is a sport, but because people are fascinated by it. Much like Cheerleading, much like the National Spelling Bee. Neither are sports, but people watch them.

You could also draw a line between sports and competitions much like you can with sports and games. Examples of competitions in my mind would be Ice Skating, Dancing, Diving, or other activities where you perform an act of entertainment and are judged on your performance. These are not true sports.

Pool and Darts are parlor games, not sports. I think most would agree there.

In the end, it doesnt matter, Poker is a great game to play. But sometimes it is important to keep things in perspective. Just because you can win a ton of money and get tired doing it...that doesnt make it a sport. Thats one man's opinion anyway.