Tiger Woods Brings Assets For PGA TOUR '13

Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 13 will include 22 professional golfers. As well as Tiger Woods himself, those confirmed so far include Bubba Watson and the two cover stars: Rory McIlroy and Rickie Fowler. The game will also come with 16 golf courses (21 if you purchase the Collector's Edition). The famous Augusta National Golf Club has already been announced, but Pebble Beach has emerged as the second confirmed course to feature in the game. EA has thrown in a handful of screenshots showing four of the holes on this course:

Hole #4

Hole #8

Hole #17

Hole #18

The newest instalment in the Tiger Woods franchise will also include a raft of new features, such as the ·Tiger Legacy Challenge mode. Players can relive the most memorable career accomplishments as the franchise's namesake grows from child prodigy into the golfing legend that we all know.

New online modes include online Country Clubs. Players can create their own country club into which they can invite their friends. Teaming up means that you'll get quicker access to those more exclusive golf courses. Alternatively, you can compete against other club members to try and earn the Club Championship.

This will also be the first game in the franchise to include Kinect integration, which EA confirms will feature full body tracking to "create the most advanced virtual golf swing to date". There will also be voice commands integrated into the game too.

Full details on all of the above new features will be revealed over the coming months. For now, I can show you the oddly titled 'announcement' trailer, despite the game being revealed back at E3 2011 and the first details emerging in October.

One of the new features that EA did want to preview today is the Total Swing Control mechanic. Players will have full control over their swing with a range of different adjustable factors creating the possibility of millions of different shots with just a single club:

Swing Tempo - For the 1st time in Tiger Woods PGA TOUR history, the tempo and speed of your swing is going to directly influence the power of your shot. Fast tempo will add more distance to shots. Slow tempo will result in less distance.

Shot Setup – Create all possible shot types from one shot setup. Drag your aiming marker forward and back to blend between full , ¾ , pitch, and chip shots. Create draw and fade shots by opening and closing your golfer’s stance. Affect the launch trajectory by moving the ball forward or backward in your stance to create flop and punch shots. The possibilities are endless, allowing any real shot to be created in the game.

Strike Meter – Using the all-new Strike Meter, place the sweet spot of the club precisely where you wish to hit the ball. While a center strike is the most common, you can use low and high strikes to alter power, spin and trajectory.
Swing Arc – The visualization of the golfer’s swing is shown in the form of an arc. Use this arc as a guide to execute your swing with the proper power, trajectory and shot shape.

All-New Animations – Utilizing the latest version of EA’s sophisticated ANT animation system, you’ll be able to see in real-time whether your golf swing is on or off plane through your golfer’s on-screen animations; allowing you to connect with your swing like never before!

If this sounds a little too overwhelming for you, the Lead Designer for the game, Mike DeVault, walks you through the feature mechanics in this new trailer:

Those who can't view the video can instead take a look at three of the game's golfers as they benefit from the new mechanic:

Rickie Fowler

Rory McIlroy

Tiger Woods

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 13 is due to be released on March 27th, 2012.