Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09 Review

[RaychelSnr]

We have just posted our review of Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09.

Quote:

"Golf has an unmistakable empty feeling nowadays without Tiger Woods prowling around golf courses on Sundays. Luckily for us digital sports fans, we can now partake in a round of golf against Tiger, torn ACL or not in real life. Better yet, we can take in a round of golf as Tiger in this year's edition of Tiger Woods from EA Sports."

[asu666]

I think EA is moving in the right direction with TW, but I still prefer the gameplay in Hot Shots Golf: OoB. The little details and the new swing style are insanely good in Hot Shot and TW still trails in the fun factor arena imo.

[ChaseB]

Quote: Originally Posted by asu666

I think EA is moving in the right direction with TW, but I still prefer the gameplay in Hot Shots Golf: OoB. The little details and the new swing style are insanely good in Hot Shot and TW still trails in the fun factor arena imo.

Hot Shots > all golf games, I concur.

[OddyOh]

I was a Tiger Woods guy until 08 on the PS3...now I'm a Hot Shots guy.

[kennytomson]

i love watching golf, don't miss any of the 3 majors. i like tiger woods, and lately as i'm getting too old for other sports i'm attempting to practice the sport (live in sunny florida less than 10 miles from the man himself actually). so why don't i buy this game ever? it's a cartoon mess that doesn't even attempt recreating the sport.

[dave374]

I really like Tiger this year, but the locked courses, equipment, etc... and putting system keep it from reaching the pinnacle.
And where the hell did Glenn Abbey course go? I loved that course, being a Canadian. Sigh ... probably gonna have to pay 400 or 800 MS points for it.

[pietasterp]

Quote: Originally Posted by kennytomson

i love watching golf, don't miss any of the 3 majors. i like tiger woods, and lately as i'm getting too old for other sports i'm attempting to practice the sport (live in sunny florida less than 10 miles from the man himself actually). so why don't i buy this game ever? it's a cartoon mess that doesn't even attempt recreating the sport.

kenny, I just could not agree with you more. This game is so far from a simulation of the sport of golf, it makes NBA Jam look like NBA2K.

On to the review:

"In my opinion, the putting system needs an overhaul sooner or later, but it is far from the worst ever concocted for a golf video game."

Actually, I honestly do think it is by far the worst putting system ever concocted for a golf video game. Really; I say that with no exaggeration or hyperbole at all. I defy anyone to point me to a game that had a WORSE putting system than this game does. Let me get this straight: I pick a putter that can hit the ball a certain distance, then adjust my swing appropriately based on that new scale, which is generally within 10% of the actual distance of the putt, which means I can basically just pick the appropriate "length" putter and take a full swing every time? It's like the programmers are using some sort of cheap, shortcut, work-around to bypass having to actually come up with a naturalistic putting scheme whereby your one-and-only putter can hit the ball a certain distance, and you have to adjust your swing appropriately based on the distance of the putt. It's really the only way that makes any sense, and it's something that was in console golf games as far back as 4 years ago...

"Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09 is one of the greatest golf video games ever."

Yikes. Play many golf games ever? Off the top of my head, I can think of at least 10 golf games that were better, even by today's standards:

Leaderboard Golf (and subsequent "World Class" Leaderboard Golfs)
Mean 18
Jack Nicklaus Golf (all incarnations, but especially the "Golden Bear Challenge" version; this was actually one of the greatest golf video games ever)
Links (original, 386 Pro, LS, and all subsequent PC versions)
Sierra's PGA Tour Golf
Nintendo's original "golf" and follow-up NES Open
Golden Tee Golf
Microsoft Golf
EA's original PGA Tour Golf series (up until the first incarnation of "Tiger Woods" golf in 1996, I believe...not sure, this is just off the top of my head)

...and of course, still the gold standard for console golf (which is sad, because at the time I bought it I thought the game was just solid, if unspectacular): Links 2004 Xbox.

I'm not going to argue with anyone about their opinion on a game, but it seems to me that so many people are so utterly brainwashed by the hegemony that is EA sports' interpretation of golf, that they have no other frame of reference by which to judge a game. Tiger Woods is so far away from what I would consider a good golf game, it amazes me that I feel like I'm one of the only people on the anti-Tiger Woods island.

Don't get me wrong; I'm not saying don't enjoy the game. If you like EA's brand of golf, have fun! But for those looking for a good simulation of the game...this is about the farthest thing from it I can imagine (for a game that purports to simulate the sport). And if it's arcade golf you're looking for, there's nothing better than pints and Golden Tee, although I hear Hot Shots has a very loyal following. I guess I'll have to stick to Links 2001 on my PC and Links 2004 for XBox for my sim golf fix for the forseeable future...

[ComfortablyLomb]

Don't forget Mario Golf on the N64. That game is an underappreciated gem.

And I do think Golden Tee is garbage FWIW.