Haney joins Tiger's PGA Tour 09

Although they're no death and taxes, annual installments in Electronic Arts' many pro-sporting franchises are one of life's near certainties. The publisher has already announced a number of its usual suspects for the 2008 season, including Madden NFL 09 and its collegiate counterpart NCAA Football 09, and today it officially teed up Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09 for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, and Wii.

This year, Tiger will be sharing the spotlight with his real-world personal coach, Hank Haney. Commentary from Haney is the primary new addition to the game's single-player career mode, and according to EA, the dialogue will be customized to a golfer's individual performance in a round.

EA's Tiburon studio has also revisited the game's online component. GamerNet will let players undertake various challenges directly from the links, such as longest drive or best approach shot, and it will also feature daily leaderboards. Tiger Woods 09's online mode will also benefit from simultaneous play. According to the publisher, this new offering will let golfers play each hole at the same time, which it hopes will speed up matches and let players take a course at their own pace.

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09 is expected to hit the links on August 26.