A few caveats before I jump into my review for EA Sports’ newest golf offering: Tiger Woods PGA Tour Golf 10.

1. I am not a “gamer”, per se. And by that I mean that while I enjoy video games, and have at times been quite into EA Sports games like NCAA Football and Madden, as well as 2KSports titles like College Hoops and the MLB 2K series, I’ve also gone entire calendar years without picking up a video game controller.
2. I’ve never owned a copy of any previous Tiger Woods game for any system, though I’ve played it from time to time.
3. I’m not into PS3s or XBOXs. I play the Wii exclusively when I play video games because I love the physical activity required.

And now with that said, you can take my next statement for whatever you feel it is worth: Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 for the Wii is the best sports video game experience ever. It has to be. I simply do not see how any other sports video game experience could compare.

I realize that, scientifically speaking, you cannot prove a hypothesis simply by saying that you cannot imagine an alternative; but I’m not trying to be scientific here. I am offering my visceral reaction to my first week of playing Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10, based on my relatively limited knowledge of the overall video game landscape.

Allow me to now list of some of the reasons why I am so fond of Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 for the Wii, as well as offer you a pretty good deal on the game bundled with the Wii Motion Plus extension that I’m about to discuss:

• Click here: Buy.com Tiger Woods PGA Tour Golf 10 Bundle (includes Wii MotionPlus) for $58.99 + FREE SHIPPING! Exp 9/30/09

[Editor's Note: A reader updated me in the comments section that Buy.com may currently be out of stock if you use the link above. I'd still try there first, but if they are out you can always try Amazon at the following link: Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 Wii Motion Plus Bundle]

(And for whatever it’s worth, I did not initially write this review with the intention of dropping the above affiliate link. I wrote it because I am madly in love with this game. But once I realized there were affiliate links available, I figured why not. Gotta start adding a few bucks to the coffers here and there to save up for next year’s version!)

The Wii Motion Plus controller extension is like magic

I have played Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 with the regular Wii remote, with the Nerf extension for Wii Sports that turns the Wii remote into an actual physical golf club, and with the Wii Motion Plus extension attached. There is absolutely no comparison. You get a completely different, and absolutely more realistic experience playing with the Wii Motion Plus extension. If you have a draw in your natural golf swing, chances are you will have a draw on Tiger Woods PGA Tour Golf 10. I know this because it’s true for me, so just like on a real golf course I have to compensate for it.

(And here’s a tip: make sure when you buy Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 — and you absolutely should buy it — that you get the one bundled with the Wii Motion Plus remote extension. It’s only about $10 extra, but I think costs $24.99 by itself. You really one need one Wii Motion Plus extension too. It’s golf, so only one person can shoot at a time and it’s easy to just use one remote and hand it off after each shot.)

Where you really notice the difference between the Wii Motion Plus extension and playing Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 without it is on the greens.  The precision putting is stunning in its accuracy. To be a good putter in Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10, you literally grip the Wii remote like you are gripping an actual putter, hold your hands exactly the same as you would a putter, and use the same smooth motion to putt that you’d use on an actual green. It’s a crapshoot without the Wii Motion Plus extension, but with it you can actually feel a little bit of the confidence and competence that the real pros feel when they step up to putt.

I cannot say enough about how realistic the Wii Motion Plus makes the experience.

The Course Selection is sublime

Over the last 36 hours or so, my buddy and I played a 72-hole 1-on-1 challenge and rotated between four different courses: Wolf Creek GC, St. Andrews, Pebble Beach, and TPC Sawgrass. (He beat me by 6 strokes, that bastard. I was down 8 going into the back 9 at Sawgrass, battled back to 3 down with a string of clutch birdies, and then hit my tee shot in the water trying to land it a little too perfectly the island green. Needless to say, I was distraught.)

Among the other courses I can remember being on there off the top of my head: Doral, Bethpage, Turnberry, and a bunch of other British Open, U.S. Open, and TPC courses. There are tons of options, some of which have to be unlocked through the career mode. The only course I did not see that was a noticeable omission was Augusta National, which apparently has never been a part of the Tiger Woods series or any other video game series.

I guess a tradition unlike any other is too great for us mortals to play on a video game. Oh well.

The Player Customization and career modes seem incredible

I couch this statement with “seem” because I have not delved into the career mode yet myself, so I am going off of what I’ve been told by my friend and dad, both of whom have raved about the options and setup of the career mode. Plus, I’ve read in numerous other reviews that it is the most extensive and realistic career mode for any golf game ever…and perhaps even any sports game ever. After I investigate this more myself, I’ll write another post detailing the experience.

I can say that the player creation and customization options are pretty sweet. There are certainly enough facial and physical variables to create a player that looks pretty damn close to yourself or whoever you are modeling. And from kilts and sandals to slacks and golf shoes, you pretty much have every option possible for what you want your player to wear.

Online Options

Here is one of the criticisms I always hear of video games, especially golf video games: why don’t you just go out and play a real round of golf?

Look, I think there are very few people who would say that they enjoy playing Tiger Woods more than they enjoy actually being out there on a course. Absolutely, if I could round up my buddies and shoot over to Pebble Peach for a morning round on a Sunday, we’d all do it in a second.

But guess what? That might happen once in our lifetimes…if we’re lucky; and the truth is, it probably will never happen.

What is realistic is that my friends and I, scattered all across the U.S., could link our Wiis together, wake up on a Sunday morning, and play Pebble Beach while actually having to perform a legitimate golf swing on every shot. Sure, it’s virtual reality…but even the most jaded video game hater would have to admit that that is pretty cool.

And here is the other thing: I’m poor. Not destitute poor, but certainly not unpoor enough to be able to afford greens fees every weekend. What I can afford is the $50-60 bucks for Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10, which then gives me the ability to play some of the world’s most famous golf courses the way they were meant to be played.

If I stepped out onto the teebox at Pebble Beach tomorrow (assuming I was cool not paying rent for a month so I could afford it), I might shoot a 150. Granted, I suck, and it would still be fun…but I wouldn’t get to attempt some of the majestic approach shots from the fairway that make playing Pebble Beach such a great experience. I’d be in the water or hacking through trees just trying to make it to the green in single digits.

With a round or two of Tiger Woods to get comfortable with the swing mechanics, the distance measurements and suggestions, and the precision putting, you can competently step up from the pro tees and viscerally experience the power and frustration that Major courses bring. It may not be “real”, but it sure is fun. And fun is what video games are all about anyway; Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 just offers the most realistic fun I can possibly imagine.

One other note regarding online play: there are single-day and four-day tournaments going on constantly, which allow you to test your skills against other players from around the world. That’s just badass and something I can’t wait to delve into.

The game, of course, is not perfect. Here are a few quick-hit things that stink:

• You can’t include more than one user-controlled player in career mode. This isn’t a huge deal since I live alone, but would have sucked back in college. However, the improvements that your custom player makes do carry over when you use him or her in exhibition matches.
• There is no way to play an actual tournament with two human players, at least not that I found. My buddy and I wanted to set it up so that we could compete against other players in our 72-hole tournament. But this can only be done in Career mode, and only one player can play. So we just had to keep track of our 18-hole totals from each course ourselves, but it did give us the opportunity to rotate through some of our favorite courses.
• The announcers did not record enough statements. Scott Van Pelt from ESPN is one of them, and I think he may only have three unique statements in total. It’s pretty annoying when you hear “What a rare gem that was!” after you left a five-foot putt for par short.

Really though, those are pretty nit-picky. Overall, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 is an absolutely outstanding game. I’ve been playing all exhibitions with friends so far, so I’m excited to actually delve into the career mode and enjoy the challenge of working my way up to winning Majors. There is no way to quick-sim through stuff, which I like.

The best video games, in my opinion, are ones that are challenging but fair, realistic, and filled with options that allow you to customize your experience as you become more savvy. Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 offers all of that and more. Plus, the evolution of Wii sports games brought about by the Wii Motion Plus controller extender catapults the latest Tiger Woods offering into the pantheon of greatest sports video game experience ever.

As far as I am concerned, it’s the greatest.

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* – Tiger Woods PGA Tour Golf 10 course screenshot credit: Official Website

* – Tiger Woods PGA Tour Golf 10 addressing ball screenshot credit: Sidelineshow.com

* – Tiger Woods PGA Tour Golf 10 cover image credit: WiiGolf.net