Golf is a club and ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. I feel like most people already know what golf is, but I figured I would explain it very shortly to be safe. Some people consider golf to not be a sport. Let me go into detail with the five reasons I feel like golfing is indeed a sport, and is just as hard as any other sport.

1. Length of Time

Golf is a sport that usually takes about four hours to play. Football and basketball games are only about three hours and that includes the breaks you are given. Golf usually takes up to four hours or more to play 18 holes while walking constantly, swinging clubs and having to deal with the mental pressure of each shot. You also must take weather into consideration here. Not many sports besides baseball, tennis and rarely football must stop when the weather doesn’t cooperate. There is no cancellation though. You wait. That might be five hours before golfing again. It’s hard to be in a groove and have to stop for that long in any sport.

2. Mental aspect

While maybe not as physically demanding as other sports, golf is one of the most mental extreme sports along with running. It requires daily practice and concentration. The ball, the clubs, the weather can always be so random and unforgiving, you cannot help but to get mad and throw your club or swear. Every move you make has to be planned, because just one slip up can cost you an entire stroke. There are also so many rules in golf, it can be mentally challenging to keep them all in mind.

3. Physical aspect

Golf requires so much practice and effort for you to be considered decent. From hours of practice getting the ball to go straight, to countless putting sessions to master reading the greens. Not to mention, most of the time a cart is not available, so you are walking almost seven miles throughout the duration of a round. This entails more foot travel than many other sports, even running! Golf can put damage on your shoulders, or your back from swinging the wrong way. Even though nowhere near as bad as football, golf can bring as much physical pain as baseball and basketball.

4. Cost

It is grueling to play golf when looking at how much you have to pay. Clubs these days run over $300 for just ONE. The average golfer equips about nine to 11. You can get a decent set of irons at the store for over $200. Also, you have to look semi casual/professional when playing this sport. The appropriate attire can cost almost $150 for a polo, shoes and pants/shorts. Put this all in with the green fees, which can run anywhere from $25 to $100+. Want to use a cart? Be ready to fork out $20 more. Golf is easily considered one of the most expensive sports to play, which can put a damper on anyone.

5. Dedication

To be good at golf, you truly have to be dedicated. Look at the stats. Jim Brown, who is considered one of the best football players of all time, won all of his championships before age 30. Michael Jordan won all of his MVP's before age 34. Look at the baseball greats -- their statistics seem to go down as they age. With golf, let’s look at Arnold Palmer. Won 49 of his 62 Tour victories and six of his seven majors after the age of 30. He spent a majority of his time growing up trying to master the game, and it can be grueling on you to see success not coming. That mental urge to give up, it’s tough.

As you can see, golf is no breeze. Golf is no easy sport. It takes dedication, strength, emotions and money. Being a golfer for just four years now, I have noticed very, very little improvements in my game. It has been tough to stick with it some days, and I have been aching for days after a bad swing or a long round.