Wimbledon 2012 Thread

[Sarcastic]

Venus Williams is out in the first round. Probably time for her to retire.

[bdreason]

Ya the worst part is that it isn't even surprising.




My picks for the tourney are Federer and Azarenka.

[alenleomessi]

last chance for fed

[enayes]

Hoping for Fed or Nadal, anyone besides Djokovic.

No one cares about the women.

[The_Yearning]

Novak and Sharapova.

Berdych lost too lol.

[ForeverHeat]

No love for Murray?

[Smoke117]

Djokovic and Nadal will meet in the finals like they always do with Djokovic taking out Nadal. Rafa can only beat him on clay these days.

[MeloMike]

Berdych and Isner both upset in R1.

Especially surprised with Isner with that serve on grass. Didn't get to watch today, anyone know what happened there? Just got outplayed by Falla?

[B-Easy8]

Federer or Djokovic for me. I hope Feds wins but Djoko may be too much for him.

Womens im thinking Sharapova. I hope Wozniacki can do something though.

[magic14]

What do you guys think of Tsonga? I don't follow tennis but he's probably the only player I'd be able to watch an entire match.

[Sarcastic]

Federer got an applause from Prince Charles.

http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_20950155/prince-charles-applauds-roger-federers-win-at-wimbledon


Must feel good as hell to have royalty salute you. :bowdown:

[DaHeezy]

last chance for fed

We keep saying this year after year, yet he's still no.3 in the world

[arkain]

Nadal Out !!!

[ducktape]

thank you based god

[Rysio]

federer must be celebrating right now. :cheers:

[arkain]

federer must be celebrating right now. :cheers:

Djokovic was always the bigger threat imo on grass. Regardless, it's a big boost to everyone's chances.

[Sarcastic]

Andy Murray was on the same side as Nadal. He'll likely be in the finals now. Djokovic and Federer would play in the semis.

[ducktape]

you forgot that they slowed down all of the surfaces including grass boosting up nadal's chances of winning every grand slam

let's get it federer

[All Net]

Shocked nadal is out

[enayes]

you forgot that they slowed down all of the surfaces including grass boosting up nadal's chances of winning every grand slam

let's get it federer

the playing style has changed, everyone used to serve and volley and now it is baseline tennis, the style of play shifted the courts to how they are now

[dunksby]

Sweet, that overrated piece of trash is out :bowdown:

[Qwyjibo]

I'm a huge Federer fan so this definitely increases his chances to win and I'm glad. But I totally respect Nadal, he's friggin awesome and this is a shame for the tournament in general.

As long as Djokovic doesn't win though, it's all good.

[bdreason]

Andy Murray was on the same side as Nadal. He'll likely be in the finals now. Djokovic and Federer would play in the semis.


I haven't looked at the bracket, but shouldn't the 1st and 4th seeds play each other in the Semi's? That would be Djoker and Murray.

[EnoughSaid]

Federer was cruising last year until Tsonga took him out. In my opinion, I think Fed has the best chance to take it this year.

And then Mario probably for the Women's Title.

[Sarcastic]

I haven't looked at the bracket, but shouldn't the 1st and 4th seeds play each other in the Semi's? That would be Djoker and Murray.

It's 1/3 and 2/4 in the semis. Or at least it was supposed to be. Bottom bracket is open now.

[dunksby]

I haven't looked at the bracket, but shouldn't the 1st and 4th seeds play each other in the Semi's? That would be Djoker and Murray.
It should be but it is not.

[Smoke117]

federer must be celebrating right now. :cheers:

Why? Djokovic is now the best grass court player in the world and Federer has to go through him to get to the finals. A lot of people see Wimbledon as Rogers last chance to get a Major and it is (as it's his best court), but he's not exactly the favorite if he ends up facing Djokovic in the Semi's. I thought Djokovic surpassed Federer physically as a player as far as back as the 2008 season. He completely gave that US Open Title to Federer because he was mentally weak at the time...but that was four years ago and the Djoker doesn't wilt under pressure anymore and has shown to be one of the toughest players on mentally these days. Djokovic will have to play like shit and Federer the game of his life for Roger to beat him if they end up playing in the semi finals.

Once it get's to the hard court and the U.S Open Djokovic is BY FAR THE BEST PLAYER and Fed has no chance. Raja can't beat Novak on the hard courts that's for sure.

[Rysio]

Why?
wasn't djokovic like 50-0 last year before he got completely embarrassed by federer at wimbledon?


Once it get's to the hard court and the U.S Open Djokovic is BY FAR THE BEST PLAYER and Fed has no chance.
it took him 5 sets, had to overcome 2 match points just to get by him last year and federer choked hard too. so i don't see how fed has no chance.

[Black Joker]

Fed with the epic comeback from 2 sets down

[EnoughSaid]

What an epic match. :bowdown: This is the thing I love about Tennis. Almost every match, doesn't matter between who, has the potential to be out of this world. Hopefully Fed can go all the way and beat Novak this time, just like he did in the French Open last year. :rockon:

[jamal99]

wasn't djokovic like 50-0 last year before he got completely embarrassed by federer at wimbledon?


Djokovic won Wimbledon last year...

[enayes]

^^ federer ousted him at the french open

[imdaman99]

shit man, wtf nadal :(

(yes i am 1 day late :lol )

[dunksby]

wasn't djokovic like 50-0 last year before he got completely embarrassed by federer at wimbledon?


It's funny cause Djokovic won the Wimbledon last year :roll: Novak is the best tennis player in the world right now don't matter if fools like you don't get it.

[B-Easy8]

Cilic with the epic match against Querrey. Second longest Wimbledon match in history. He won 17-15 in the 5th.

[All Net]

Cilic with the epic match against Querrey. Second longest Wimbledon match in history. He won 17-15 in the 5th.
Makes you wonder if tie breaks in 5th set should be added into of carrying on.

[Eat Like A Bosh]

Fed with the comeback after dropping the first 2 sets!

[dude77]

brian baker .. rooting hard for that kid .. out of tennis for 4+ years .. he's tough as nails and gotta admire the comeback after all the injuries .. he has a realistic shot at making the quarterfinals and from there who knows what can happen

[Sarcastic]

I'm gonna predict Tsonga vs Djoker in the finals at this point.

[bdreason]

Love this Paszek girl. Great player and sexy as hell. Looks like Azarenka is about to end her run though.






Still sticking with my Fed and Azarenka picks. Djoker is playing well though so not sure if Fed will get past him.

[Sarcastic]

Serena is in the finals. She looks like she is hungry for that 5th title.

[Freedom Kid7]

I, for one, hope Federer can win.

[EnoughSaid]

Fed is much better on grass than he is on any other surface. So I'm hoping he takes down Djoker.

[Eat Like A Bosh]

I don't if any of you have seen this :oldlol:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3um_Lw5yoI

[enayes]

I don't if any of you have seen this :oldlol:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3um_Lw5yoI


:lol pretty funny

[B-Easy8]

I don't if any of you have seen this :oldlol:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-3um_Lw5yoI

Funny stuff but is the ESPN guy retarted? His name is Troicki not Troiski, if you work on a sports network you should be able to pronounce names. C in Yugoslavian countries is only pronounced as an S at the end of words with nothing following it.

[SevereUpInHere]

Not sure if this is really relevant in here, but anyone read this?

http://www.manageyourshapeblog.com/.a/6a00e54f9153e0883301287570697f970c-500wi

Such a good read, anyone even remotely interested in tennis will enjoy it. It's not too tennisy if you're not a big fan.

[Black Joker]

this is just an awesome set so far.

[Sarcastic]

Fed up 2 sets to 1.

[Sarcastic]

Djoker is crumbling.

[Black Joker]

Djoko is ****ing up right now

[B-Easy8]

Fed is all over this match.

Thankfully I got on Fed at 3 to 1.

[Sarcastic]

Fed wins the match, and likely the tournament.

[Qwyjibo]

Awesome.

I really hope Federer takes it all. I'd really like to see Murray win a slam at some point and Tsonga seems like a likable person but for now, Federer needs to keep building that GOAT resume.

[Rysio]

but but federer had no chance. :rolleyes:

[dude77]

murray's taking federer down !


no but seriously .. federer's heavily favored in the final now but it'd be something if murray upset him

edit: getting ahead of myself .. murray's not even in the final yet .. assuming he will be but obviously don't count tsonga out

[Kobe Jnr]

when was the last time Federer won a major tournament? It seems its been yonks.

[Grinder]

Always good to see Djoker get taken out though it's a shame that it's Federer who beat him. Hopefully Tsonga can take out Murray and upset Fed in the final.

[Punpun]

GOATFERER STRAIGHT UP DOMINATED.

:cry:

[EnoughSaid]

ROGER effin FEDERER! :bowdown: Doing these things at basically 31 years old. Now going for his 7th Wimbledon! :bowdown:

[Black Joker]

Murray v. Fed.

should be interesting on sunday

[All Net]

Murray reaches the final

[EnoughSaid]

Murray vs. Federer wow. The two most liked players in the Final. Hoping for Federer to win it though.

[DuMa]

so this is tennis without nole and rafa

[enayes]

Fed is all over this match.

Thankfully I got on Fed at 3 to 1.

Not as good as 5 to 1.

:pimp:

[Eat Like A Bosh]

Andy Murray and Rodger Federer, awesome, can't wait!

And I'm glad Fed knocked out Djok today.

[enayes]

Final is tomorrow/this morning at 9am on ESPN. Don't miss it, history will be made!

I predict Federer in 4 sets.

6-7(5), 7-5, 6-4, 7-6(4)

:bowdown: :bowdown: :bowdown:

[raiderfan19]

Let's go fed! But anyone who thinks Murray is British needs to watch braveheart. Scottish is not British

[Black Joker]

early break for Murray

[arkain]

Murray looking very good. Fed aint able to hit any winners.

[raiderfan19]

Fed looks like his back hurts

[arkain]

God I hate how they've made Wimbledon so slow now.

[enayes]

God I hate how they've made Wimbledon so slow now.

It's not just the grass, the playing styles have contributed.

[raiderfan19]

Fed is going to win in straights

[enayes]

Fed is going to win in straights

Good call.

Murray takes the first 6-4.

[arkain]

1 each. What a set point Federer played. Hopefully that gets him going.

[enayes]

Short rain delay, play has resumed with the roof closed.

Players on serve in the 3rd, tied at one set apiece.

[Sarcastic]

Murray just lost his serve in the 3rd.

Game. Set. Match.

[enayes]

Fed leads Murray 4-6, 7-5, 6-3.


*Fed up a break in the 4th now, hoping Murray can get back on track. He hasn't been moving well the last 5-6 games.

[Sarcastic]

Fed breaks his serve in the 4th.

[enayes]

Federer returns to #1 in the world winning his 7th Wimbledon and 17th Major, and he is turning 31 in a month.

If there was ever any doubt on who is the greatest player of all time, there isn't anymore.

:bowdown:

[Rysio]

GOAT.

:bowdown: :bowdown: :bowdown: :bowdown: :bowdown:

[DaHeezy]

Federer returns to #1 in the world winning his 7th Wimbledon and 17th Major, and he is turning 31 in a month.

If there was ever any doubt on who is the greatest player of all time, there isn't anymore.

:bowdown:

I'd have no problem saying that.

Fed at #1 in an era with Nadal and No-Joke at his age cements the deal for me

[Freedom Kid7]

Federer :bowdown: . Well done Fed, cement that legacy.

[Punpun]

GOATFERER CEMENTING HIMSELF EVEN MORE AS THE ****ING GOAT. **** YEAH. GREAT DAY FOR THE WORLD.

:bowdown:

[k0kakw0rld]

French people say "Les aigles ne volent pas avec les pigeons"

Federer GOAT :bowdown: #1 again :applause: :rockon: :cheers: :banana:

I felt bad for Murray tho. But still he should be proud of himself for reaching the finals.

[Punpun]

Hawks don't Fly with pigeons indeed. And The GOAT flies over everyone.

[dunksby]

Federer is the greatest player ever to grace the court.

[Juges8932]

Hell yeah! Glad to see Fed win. It was a real good match. Both players played at a high level. Fed would have beaten just about anybody today (except maybe Nadal). He had a lot of unforced errors, but some of the shots he was hitting were incredible. Murray played great and he certainly didn't lose due to not showing up or the moment getting to him. Fed was just better today and wore him down.

It was sad to see how emotional Murray was after the match, but nice to see how much he cares. There were a lot of positives for him in the match today and I hope he can win a few slams in his career. His attitude has gotten better along with his offense. I think he will soon make a similar jump as Djokovic and start winning some slams.

[DaHeezy]

You gotta feel for Murray. Playing in an era with Federer, Djokavic, and Nadal has got to take a toll on you career. Probably harder to get a majors victory in this era than in the Sampras/Agassi or Jimmy Connors/McEnroe/Lendl era.

[chips93]

nice speech by murray afterwards

[DuMa]

it was painful to see Murray choke up like that in the last ovation he got but it just brought back painful memories of how the other Andy lost in 2009. that was more gut wrenching and sadder than this loss for this Andy.

both legacies will forever been closed from the door for the King of Tennis

[enayes]

it was painful to see Murray choke up like that in the last ovation he got but it just brought back painful memories of how the other Andy lost in 2009. that was more gut wrenching and sadder than this loss for this Andy.

both legacies will forever been closed from the door for the King of Tennis


:wtf:

[gigantes]

Probably harder to get a majors victory in this era than in the Sampras/Agassi or Jimmy Connors/McEnroe/Lendl era.
don't forget the mighty borg in that last group.

but yea, i agree with the overall point.

[raiderfan19]

You gotta feel for Murray. Playing in an era with Federer, Djokavic, and Nadal has got to take a toll on you career. Probably harder to get a majors victory in this era than in the Sampras/Agassi or Jimmy Connors/McEnroe/Lendl era.
This is without question the golden era of tennis as far as the top of the game. Those 3 guys have won like 32 of the last 36 slams. That run will never be equaled

[gigantes]

This is without question the golden era of tennis as far as the top of the game. Those 3 guys have won like 32 of the last 36 slams. That run will never be equaled
i'd say it's a golden era. the tendency is to think that current history is the most iconic / memorable of all, but connors-borg-mcenroe was also a definite golden era IMO. it wasn't the dominance of titles per se that made it golden in that case- it was the amazing clash of styles. not to mention the greater drama.

actually i'd say that earlier period... mid-70's to early 80's... was a greater golden era. not only was the clash of personalities far more entertaining, but the slower equipment tended to make the points far more interesting. the volley and net game was huge in particular, and you just don't see those incredible back-and-forths over the net anymore... you don't see wizards such as mcenroe (and boris becket) lunging all over the place making these incredible shots and saves.

no, the game is much more powerful and less nuanced now. and the big three all tend to be gentlemanly and non controversial. there are positives and negatives to all that....

[Eat Like A Bosh]

Congratz Fed! That's 7 Wimbletons!

[imdaman99]

i have no problem calling fed the greatest ever... but boy does he have issues against nadal. i feel as if nadal is his kryptonite. nadal could have won this if he didnt blow it way early. he could beat federer anywhere, he has issues with djoker now though (minus french open)

[Sarcastic]

This is without question the golden era of tennis as far as the top of the game. Those 3 guys have won like 32 of the last 36 slams. That run will never be equaled

The fact that only 3 guys have been winning means it's a weak era. Also the Americans have been crap, when historically America has had some of the best players ever is further proof that it's a weak era.

[raiderfan19]

The fact that only 3 guys have been winning means it's a weak era. Also the Americans have been crap, when historically America has had some of the best players ever is further proof that it's a weak era.
If this isn't a joke, it's one of the dumbest things iv ever read.

[enayes]

If this isn't a joke, it's one of the dumbest things iv ever read.

He's kidding :lol

[Sarcastic]

If this isn't a joke, it's one of the dumbest things iv ever read.

How is this the golden era of tennis, when you have only 3 guys dominating, everyone plays the exact same style, and all the courts have been changed to resemble each other. Clay has been sped up, the grass has been slowed down, and the hard courts are all the same now.


Do you consider the golden era of golf when Tiger Woods dominated?

[raiderfan19]

How is this the golden era of tennis, when you have only 3 guys dominating, everyone plays the exact same style, and all the courts have been changed to resemble each other. Clay has been sped up, the grass has been slowed down, and the hard courts are all the same now.


Do you consider the golden era of golf when Tiger Woods dominated?
Tiger woods never dominated the way the big 3 have. The issue is whether you believe that the big 3 have won or the other guys have lost most of these matches. I personally believe the big 3 have won moreso than others have lost. Roddick, Murray, soderling and tsonga would all have won multiple slams in any other era. Go back and look at some of they guys who won slams during those other eras.

Also do you consider the 90s a weak nba era because only the bulls and rockets won for 8 years? Or the 00s weak because after those 8 years the lakers and spurs won 9 of the next 12 titles? Dominance doesn't preclude greatness. You have 2 of the top 3 to 5 players of all time plus djoker who is also a ridiculous talent and then a ton of guys with big games who've just been smothered by the big 3

[ClutchOver9000]

Federer > Djokovic > Nadal > Federer

this is the way I see it.

The 3 Kings of Tennis

[raiderfan19]

Federer is about as clear cut a goat as there is in any sport

[arkain]

Can Fed win any more though?

French Open - no way. Nadal wins this for 4-5 more years straight.

Australian Open - will be tough to beat Djokovic here.

US Open - still see Djokovic as favourite but it's possible he can get one more here, will see how he does this year considering the momentum and confidence he has.

Wimbledon - maybe, but will need someone else to take out one of Djokovic or Nadal like it happened this year.

What do you guys think? And, do you think Nadal can catch up to 17? Considering Nadal already has 11 and he's just 25 and how dominant he is on clay, he can easily get 5-6 more french open titles.

[Sarcastic]

Federer is about as clear cut a goat as there is in any sport

I think Jordan and Ruth have better claims than he does. Federer has been dominated by his greatest challenger in H2H matches.

[arkain]

I think Jordan and Ruth have better claims than he does. Federer has been dominated on clay by his greatest challenger in H2H matches.

Fixed.

[ukplayer4]

Let's go fed! But anyone who thinks Murray is British needs to watch braveheart. Scottish is not British


:wtf: :facepalm





greatness once again from federer, fed back to no.1 all is right in the world.

[Sarcastic]

Fixed.

Federer hasn't dominated Nadal on any surface.

[Carbine]

I think Jordan and Ruth have better claims than he does. Federer has been dominated by his greatest challenger in H2H matches.

It's the ultimate individual sport. There are no teammates that can dictate the outcome of your game. There are no refs and their questionable calls with this new hawk-eye system.

Whoever wins the most, in the GOAT. Bottom line.

Roger is so far ahead of his competition RIGHT NOW (and has a decent chance to even further the distance between himself and Pete) that he's as clear of a GOAT in his sport as anyone.

Roger has been dominated by Nadal, on clay. Big deal. Nobody disputes that Nadal is probably the greatest clay court player ever.

Nadal also has GOAT potential himself. If he plays at a high level for another five years and doesn't get injured, he's looking at being very close or even eclipsing Roger' title mark.

[Carbine]

Federer hasn't dominated Nadal on any surface.

Pretty sure Fed has only lost to Nadal once on grass/indoor courts.

[raiderfan19]

Federer hasn't dominated Nadal on any surface.
They are basically even on every other surface. It's just that nadal didn't make finals of other tournaments besides the French during Feds prime and fed always made the French final(except the one year they played in the semi) and there are just as many arguments against Jordan and Ruth as there are against fed if not more. Ruth played against only white competition and the slider hadn't been invented yet.

Kareem, wilt and russel have arguments against Jordan.

[bdreason]

Fed. :bowdown:

[bdreason]

And I think Gretzky holds the title for undisputed GOAT in a sport.

[Sarcastic]

No one can really argue with a straight face that Jordan is not the GOAT.

[ducktape]

we all know clay is the worst court and the courts have been slowed down for nadal to win and federer to lose

federer is the goat

federer > jordan + ruth + montana

[gigantes]

And I think Gretzky holds the title for undisputed GOAT in a sport.
definitely gretzky and ruth for major team sports.


for solo sports, there are probably many, many who dominated more than federer has dominated tennis. nothing against roger, but there are a lot of international sports out there to choose from. if i had to start researching i might start with these:

aleksandr karelin in greco-roman
sergei bubka in pole-vaulting
lance armstrong in cycling
edwin moses in hurdles

i'm sure i'm forgetting some huge names, too...


the reality is, fed is not that far past pete sampras and rod laver in terms of overall accomplishments. or in masters wins, both lendl and nadal have more than fed does. rod laver in particular was so incredibly dominant that he wound up losing eligibility for years over his amateur-to-pro transition and STILL wound up with the most singles titles of all time and TWO single-season grand slams (all four majors in one year). or if you're just looking at stats, i believe steffi graf's majors and career wins blow away roger's and every other female player in history.

i still like and respect federer a tonne, but he's definitely not the GOAT GOAT of all sports- that much is clear enough.

[raiderfan19]

No one can really argue with a straight face that Jordan is not the GOAT.
I can pretty easily argue for kareem or wilt

[Sarcastic]

I can pretty easily argue for kareem or wilt

And tennis historians can argue Laver, Borg, and Sampras as having claims to tennis GOAT too.


I guess Gretzky may have the most solid claim to GOAT status in his respective sport. His nickname is "The Great One" after all.

[Sarcastic]

definitely gretzky and ruth for major team sports.


for solo sports, there are probably many, many who dominated more than federer has dominated tennis. nothing against roger, but there are a lot of international sports out there to choose from. if i had to start researching i might start with these:

aleksandr karelin in greco-roman
sergei bubka in pole-vaulting
lance armstrong in cycling
edwin moses in hurdles

i'm sure i'm forgetting some huge names, too...


the reality is, fed is not that far past pete sampras and rod laver in terms of overall accomplishments. or in masters wins, both lendl and nadal have more than fed does. rod laver in particular was so incredibly dominant that he wound up losing eligibility for years over his amateur-to-pro transition and STILL wound up with the most singles titles of all time and TWO single-season grand slams (all four majors in one year). or if you're just looking at stats, i believe steffi graf's majors and career wins blow away roger's and every other female player in history.

i still like and respect federer a tonne, but he's definitely not the GOAT GOAT of all sports- that much is clear enough.


I think Tiger Woods was on his way to clear cut GOAT, up until Thanksgiving a few years ago.

[raiderfan19]

definitely gretzky and ruth for major team sports.


for solo sports, there are probably many, many who dominated more than federer has dominated tennis. nothing against roger, but there are a lot of international sports out there to choose from. if i had to start researching i might start with these:

aleksandr karelin in greco-roman
sergei bubka in pole-vaulting
lance armstrong in cycling
edwin moses in hurdles

i'm sure i'm forgetting some huge names, too...


the reality is, fed is not that far past pete sampras and rod laver in terms of overall accomplishments. or in masters wins, both lendl and nadal have more than fed does. rod laver in particular was so incredibly dominant that he wound up losing eligibility for years over his amateur-to-pro transition and STILL wound up with the most singles titles of all time and TWO single-season grand slams (all four majors in one year). or if you're just looking at stats, i believe steffi graf's majors and career wins blow away roger's and every other female player in history.

i still like and respect federer a tonne, but he's definitely not the GOAT GOAT of all sports- that much is clear enough.
Fair enough though karelin needs to get dinged for roiding, Moses sport would be track, not hurdles which means that Lewis, Thorpe, Johnson and bolt would all have arguments. Didn't mention phelps though and he's up there on that list. As for laver, in his era 3 of the 4 slams were on grass. Fed would already have 20+ if that was the case today

[mehyaM24]

of all sports, gretsky has gotta have the strongest case.

[raiderfan19]

I also forgot ray Robinson who is the more clear cut boxing goat.

[yobore]

aleksandr karelin in greco-roman
sergei bubka in pole-vaulting
lance armstrong in cycling
edwin moses in hurdles

Kind of dumb to do cross-sport comparisons, but...
Cycling is definitely a team sport but if you count it, it is almost unanimous among cycling fans that Eddy Merckx and not Armstrong is the GOAT (Armstrong easily 2nd though in my book, but he didn't do it all season like Federer). The rest of those sports have nowhere near as popular as tennis

[ducktape]

federer is god though

[gigantes]

Fair enough though karelin needs to get dinged for roiding, Moses sport would be track, not hurdles which means that Lewis, Thorpe, Johnson and bolt would all have arguments. Didn't mention phelps though and he's up there on that list. As for laver, in his era 3 of the 4 slams were on grass. Fed would already have 20+ if that was the case today
from what i'm seeing, moses was mainly a specialist in hurdles, with some dashes thrown in. apparently he won 122 straight races over the course of almost ten years, from 1977 - 1987. that's WOW. similar to bubka, i think.

or maybe willie shoemaker from horse-racing? isn't he a dominant GOAT?

i definitely agree with your overall track choices, although has bolt really been racing long enough to be considered this soon?

as for laver, he dominated all surfaces that were available, period. yes, the slams today are considered the top tourneys today, but i believe back in his day other majors were considered just as important if not more so. you say roger could have won more slams if they were grass, but i think laver could also have won more slams if he'd made them a priority. IIRC laver didn't even enter the slams for many years because of the restrictions around the pro/am thing.

for phelps, there's spitz to come very, very close. spitz wasn't even given the opportunity to race in an event that existed for phelps at the time. but i don't think a soul on earth thinks spitz wouldn't have won that won, too. and in one of phelps' finals, the opponent actually was the one to finish first. combine those two things, and i don't think phelps' achievement is any more impressive than spitz' was back in 1972.



Kind of dumb to do cross-sport comparisons, but...
Cycling is definitely a team sport but if you count it, it is almost unanimous among cycling fans that Eddy Merckx and not Armstrong is the GOAT (Armstrong easily 2nd though in my book, but he didn't do it all season like Federer). The rest of those sports have nowhere near as popular as tennis
it's not dumb--- you're just forgetting the context. someone proposed federer as the undisputed GOAT of sports. that automatically brings in all other significant sports.

i do agree about merckx though from what little i've read- i stand corrected on that one.

[enayes]

definitely gretzky and ruth for major team sports.


for solo sports, there are probably many, many who dominated more than federer has dominated tennis. nothing against roger, but there are a lot of international sports out there to choose from. if i had to start researching i might start with these:

aleksandr karelin in greco-roman
sergei bubka in pole-vaulting
lance armstrong in cycling
edwin moses in hurdles

i'm sure i'm forgetting some huge names, too...


the reality is, fed is not that far past pete sampras and rod laver in terms of overall accomplishments. or in masters wins, both lendl and nadal have more than fed does. rod laver in particular was so incredibly dominant that he wound up losing eligibility for years over his amateur-to-pro transition and STILL wound up with the most singles titles of all time and TWO single-season grand slams (all four majors in one year). or if you're just looking at stats, i believe steffi graf's majors and career wins blow away roger's and every other female player in history.

i still like and respect federer a tonne, but he's definitely not the GOAT GOAT of all sports- that much is clear enough.

We're talking about sports not hobbies

Sampras never even made the Final of the French (made the semis ONCE), so you can't really compare him to Federer, Pete is a couples notches below

[Sarcastic]

We're talking about sports not hobbies

Sampras never even made the Final of the French (made the semis ONCE), so you can't really compare him to Federer, Pete is a couples notches below

I would still take Sampras over Federer on the fast grass, and indoor carpet. On hard courts I think it would be even. Federer is obviously better on clay, and the new slower grass he would probably win.


I'll say this about Federer. He has the most aesthetically beautiful game I have ever seen, and I have been following tennis since the mid 80s. His game has more adaptability than I have ever seen, men or women.

[DaHeezy]

We're living in an age of GOAT GOATs. Usain Bolt, Micheal Phelps, Tiger Woods, Roger Federer, all can stake that claim.

Gretzky may have the record for the most records in any sport, but some may say Mario Lemeuix is a better player. Althoug he had amazing relfexes (he actually was diagnosed with a faster neuro-signal for hand eye co-ordination) and creativity, Gretzky lacked size, speed, and stick handling whereas Mario was closer to a complete package.

[gigantes]

We're talking about sports not hobbies
you need to get out of your troll's lair more often.

[Sarcastic]

We're living in an age of GOAT GOATs. Usain Bolt, Micheal Phelps, Tiger Woods, Roger Federer, all can stake that claim.

Gretzky may have the record for the most records in any sport, but some may say Mario Lemeuix is a better player. Althoug he had amazing relfexes (he actually was diagnosed with a faster neuro-signal for hand eye co-ordination) and creativity, Gretzky lacked size, speed, and stick handling whereas Mario was closer to a complete package.

To me, it's Jordan, Ruth, Gretzky. In that order. Those 3 are irrefutable in my opinion.

Honorable mention to Willie Mosconi in pocket billiards.

[raiderfan19]

To me, it's Jordan, Ruth, Gretzky. In that order. Those 3 are irrefutable in my opinion.

Honorable mention to Willie Mosconi in pocket billiards.
Ruth is certainly arguable. Willie mays, Micky mantle at his peak(had IMO the greatest peak in baseball history) Barry bonds, Ted Williams... All are arguable

[Sarcastic]

Ruth is certainly arguable. Willie mays, Micky mantle at his peak(had IMO the greatest peak in baseball history) Barry bonds, Ted Williams... All are arguable

Not really. The term "Ruthian" exists for a reason. He hit the farthest home runs the game has ever seen.

Barry Bonds never hit a single 500 foot home run in a game for his career. Ruth hit 7 of them in 1921 alone. If you take away his pitching years, his career slugging is over .700. Next closest is Ted Williams at .634.

[gigantes]

comparing the baseball greats, i do think ruth stands head and shoulders above. it does get a little complicated because you need to put things in context, like adjusted height of the pitcher's mound, liveliness of the ball, available pool of talent, number of teams in the league in order to make the informed choice IMO.

one tidbit: the fact that ruth was pretty-much the best pitcher and hitter in the game for five years before he focused exclusively on hitting is absolutely insane to me.

ty cobb should have been mentioned, too. he was absolutely phenomenal, along with williams, mays et al.

bonds and the many recent PED users do not belong in the HOF or even the conversation IMO.

[raiderfan19]

That version of baseball just wasn't the same thing. You want to argue Ruth was better relative to his competition that the other guys fine, but it just wasn't the same game

[Qwyjibo]

Babe Ruth's career line of .342/.474/.690 is too ridiculous to deny. The fact that he could put up those #'s in that era is even more amazing (OPS+ of 206). Him also being a very good pitcher for a stretch is just the "cherry on top" of him being the GOAT.

Ted Williams, Cobb, Bonds and Mays are up there as well but I personally would never think of putting any of them over Ruth.

[Sarcastic]

Babe Ruth's career line of .342/.474/.690 is too ridiculous to deny. The fact that he could put up those #'s in that era is even more amazing (OPS+ of 206). Him also being a very good pitcher for a stretch is just the "cherry on top" of him being the GOAT.

Ted Williams, Cobb, Bonds and Mays are up there as well but I personally would never think of putting any of them over Ruth.

Every real baseball historian puts Ruth at the top of the list, unquestioned.

[Carbine]

Every real baseball historian puts Ruth at the top of the list, unquestioned.

How can you be the unquestioned GOAT when you only played against white people?

[raiderfan19]

How can you be the unquestioned GOAT when you only played against white people?
And before there was a slider, and before there were gloves. There is obviously a case for Ruth as the goat. In fact is probably consider him the goat, but it's really easy to argue against anyone from that era because that wasn't the same game. It only had marginally more in common with current baseball than cricket does.

[Brunch@Five]

Michael Schumacher - race driving deserves a mention

I don't think any expert has anyone but Federer at #1 all-time. He won every surface, dominated the sport for 4 years, is the most skilled and most aesthetic player ever. Most weeks at #1, most grand slams.