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Tiger Woods and EA Sports make a return to golf video games

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Even though golf season is slowly coming to its close for 2021, the good news is, thanks to some new video-game releases, you don’t have to stop playing.

As Canadians it’s always sad when golf season is closer to its end than its beginning. Although golfers in this country have come out to play in record numbers over the last couple of years, in the end, Mother Nature usually gets her way.

Even though golf season is slowly coming to its close for 2021, the good news is, thanks to some new video-game releases, you don’t have to stop playing.

TIGER’S BACK

OK, before you get too excited – we just mean he’s back in virtual form. Announced earlier this year, PGA TOUR 2K22 will feature Woods. He signed a long-term deal with 2K, but since his accident earlier in 2021 there has been no word either way about a release date for the game.

At the time of the announcement (mid-March), it said that Woods would “play an active role in the video game landscape as an Executive Director and consultant with PGA Tour 2K, while 2K would also partner with Woods’ TGR Foundation.”

 

“I am looking forward to making my return to the video game landscape, and with 2K and HB Studios, I’ve found the right partners to make it happen,” said Woods. “I’m honored to take part in this opportunity and look forward to sharing my expertise and insights as we build the future of golf video games together.”

At the time of the Woods announcement, 2K also said the company had purchased HB Studios – developers of PGA Tour 2K21. HB Studios is actually a Canadian company, based in Nova Scotia. It developed 2K21, which has sold nearly two-million units as of March.

EA SPORTS GETS BACK INTO GOLF

Many golfers, now in their 20s and 30s will have fond memories of playing versions of EA Sports PGA Tour (previously named after Tiger Woods or even Rory McIlroy in the mid-2010s) and if you head to a Canadian cottage you may even find an old version of the game sitting around on a long-forgotten system that makes rainy afternoons that much more tolerable.

But we’ve never seen a version of EA Sports PGA Tour like the one that’s in development.

Recent announcements about the game include how it will use real ShotLink data, plus allow users to try to capture the FedExCup playing on the three real courses the golfers on the PGA Tour will compete on in 2022.

Players will be able to earn FedExCup points through the in-game career mode. There will also be the return of the Korn Ferry Tour. Users can compete in all four of golf’s major championships: the Masters, PGA Championship, U.S. Open, and The Open. Not only that, but players can compete at The Amundi Evian Championship and play as one of several female athletes.

It’s a massively realistic experience for gamers to go through a regular PGA Tour season and try to make a career out of competing against the best in the world.

MARIO GOLF

While it’s certainly nothing like PGA TOUR 2K22 or EA Sports PGA Tour, Mario Golf: Super Rush is, in a word, fun.

Available now for the Nintendo Switch, Mario Golf: Super Rush sees users play a variety of courses, racing around the fairway, and playing, as Nintendo Life says, “wacky-ish” golf.

While there are still options for golfers to play ‘regular’ golf in this new game (and, of course, all the usual characters like Mario, Peach, Yoshi, and Bowser to name a few), the big focus of this game is ‘speed golf.’ If a player uses ‘Dash’ mode, they are able to ‘bump’ opponents and even get boosts when chasing behind another player.

Don’t expect too much life-like golfing efforts here, but it’s a ton of fun and your typical Mario experience.

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