u/JayTee73

For context, an acquaintance of mine (let's call him Kyle) is one of those "macho dudes" who makes claims like he could win a fight against a grizzly bear, outrun a tiger, etc. I remember we were at a bar and highlights from the biathlon from the winter olympics were showing on the bar TV. Kyle was talking all sorts of trash about how he'd light up the competition, out-shoot all of them, and nit-picked every mistake like he was some sort of pro. This forms the basis of my view

My view is that all individual (non team) events should include "regular person" in each heat/round/whatever. Olympic swimming should always have a lane for "regular person" with the olympians in all the other lanes. Biathlon would have "regular person" participating in each heat. I would extend this to things like the (W)PGA tour; throw in a weekend golfer with a 20+ handicap. How about "regular person" against some Pro Bowlers? There are a ton of sports that "regular person" could join in on.

The reason is that I think context really matters. Watching Kyle get his ass kicked attempting the Biathlon vs olympians would entertain me but also give spectators a feel for just how elite these athletes really are. It's easy for the Kyles of the world to claim their athletic superiority; I think seeing the context of "regular person" trying to even come close to trained atheletes would give some perspective and hopefully shut them TF up.

(I'd make an exception for any event where "if you aren't trained properly, you could die" like the skeleton, luge, speed skating, etc.)

If there were legit reasons that this wouldn't work, I'd change this from my "view" to "I wish this were possible"

I have a high handicap and struggle to go under 100. This is always because anything within 180 yds is really tough for me to choose the right club. (I also 3-putt too often!)

I’ve typically chosen a club based on the distance I *can* hit it. For example, I am able to hit my 9i 140 yards, my 6i 180, and my AW 120. (I spent a bunch of time in the simulator over the winter trying to figure out all my clubs) Those distances are entirely dependent on perfectly flushing the ball at the center of the club face. Any deviation and the distance is gone.

I hit a round on Saturday and decided to club up on every 2nd+ shot. 140 yds? Use the 8i instead of 9i. 120yds? PW instead of AW, etc.

The mental aspect was a RELIEF! Instead of thinking, “I have to perfectly flush this shot to get to the pin”, I was thinking, “Just an easy swing and I’ll be fine”. I would occasionally hit past the pin and still chunked some shots but I was on the green WAY more often than I had before.

Worrying about that perfect strike made things so stressful. Any non-flush shot was always short and I’d have to chip when I should have been putting. Plus I’d be mad about not hitting it well. I definitely hit better when I wasn’t worrying about getting the max distance from the chosen club.

My next step is getting rid of 3 putts and improving/learning using a bump and run vs trying to land a dart next to the hole with a Lob Wedge. LOL