Balls in holes...:Who’s the best?

Lunch times at Emirates Golf Club are never dull, as it is an opportunity for me to catch up with a number of colleagues. Sometimes we discuss golf but most of the time it’s an opportunity to talk sport, especially football, although it’s a sore subject in the IGLS office with the relegation of Leicester City – such a shame, boys!

During one of these riveting conversations, a certain Emirates GC executive, who shall remain anonymous, voiced his opinion that he believed that Ronnie O’Sullivan, the newly crowned three-time World Snooker Champion, was more talented than Tiger Woods, because he could play to an equal standard both right and left-handed and because snooker was a more "technically" challenging sport.

* Is Ronnie O’Sullivan better than Tiger Woods because O’Sullivan can beat his opponents both right- and left-handed? Vote in our poll.

I have shortened his statement somewhat, but it did raise an interesting question as to which sport is "technically" the most difficult?

As a huge Tiger fan and a golf professional myself (although at different ends of the profession), I was quick to defend the game. To provide some form of argument I took a look at some measurable comparisons, starting with "playing conditions".

Snooker

• The table is perfectly flat each and every time.
• The lie is always perfect.
• The cloths on the table, although varying in speed from table to table, are made from the same material.
• The game is played indoors in a controlled environment.
• The player’s stance is always on a flat surface.

Golf

• No two greens in the world are identical or flat.
• The lie of the ball is different each time.
• There are dozens of grass types that each affect the ball flight and roll differently.
• Golf is an outdoor game and open to the all the elements.
• Every golf course’s topography differs and none are flat.

I also attempted to compare the basic technique in both games, but in the enormity of the challenge I failed after I had finished the following list:

• Wood shots (tee and fairway)
• Iron shots (short to long)
• Pitching (low, high, flop)
• Chipping (basic, bump and run, running, checked)
• Bunker shots (high, low, flop, buried, running)
• Shaped shots (high, low, draw, fade, hook, slice, punch – with woods and irons)
• Putting – say no more.

Add all these differing techniques and set-up positions to the list of varying playing conditions above and I thought to myself: "Enough said, Tom."