Tiger on the Loose

Electronic Arts announced today that the Tiger Woods golf sim, Tiger Woods 99 PGA Tour Golf, is now shipping.

In the game, players can assume the role of the 1997 PGA Tour player of the year or play against him at golf courses such as Pebble Beach Golf Links, Tournament Players Club (TPC) at Sawgrass, and TPC at Summerlin. The game also features "Tiger Tips," which EA says are, "designed to help your cyber game and your real game."

The only computer title featuring Tiger Woods, the latest edition of EA's long-lasting PGA Tour series will include competition against Tiger (as well as being able to play as him), interactive coaching tips from Tiger Woods, motion-captured swings and on-course actions, 3Dfx accelerator support, nine play modes, and screen resolutions up to 1600x1200x16bits.

Seven other PGA Tour professionals are on the disc, including Mark O'Meara, Davis Love III, Brad Faxon, Tom Kite, and Craig Stadler.

The game is also backwards compatible with previously published PGA Tour Pro courses like Spyglass Hill and TPC at Avenel. By November EA plans to have a total of 16 courses available for play via new course discs, like the Colonial Country Club, the Vegas Courses, and others.

Interplay is also included, featuring voice and text chat capabilities. EA Sports will sponsor its second annual Internet Tour featuring prizes to the nation's best Net golfers.

"Tiger Woods 99 PGA Tour Golf brings together the golfing and gaming knowledge of Tiger Woods, EA Sports, and the PGA Tour," said Richard Hilleman, vice president and executive producer of the Tiger Woods PGA Tour Golf product line at Electronic Arts.

"I've played video and computer games for many years, but this is the first time I've ever been able to say, 'This is my game.'" Said Woods. "EA Sports has delivered a high-quality, realistic game that is remarkably fast and big-time fun. From re-creating my golf swings to my emotions on the course, EA Sports has done an amazing job capturing every aspect of my game."

Tiger Woods 99 PGA Tour will retail for about US$40, with the upcoming add-on discs weighing in at $20 a piece. Tiger Woods 99 PGA Tour Gold is the first product to be released under the four-year licensing agreement the golfing phenom signed with EA.