India comes of age with simulated golf

When the Tiger Woods sex scandal broke out, there were apprehensions that we were seeing the last of the shining star of golf. Many of the brands for whom Woods was doing endorsements suddenly disassociated themselves with him. He was no longer their knight in shining armour. However, some brands kept their relationship intact, thinking that he would bounce back from the low, or simply because there was too much money involved. In fact, there were reports that strip clubs and condom brands wanted Woods for endorsements, making the paparazzi relish with glee. While we have seen Woods lose some of his confidence since his return to the game, there is no doubt that he is the numero uno still.

One major brand that has stood the test of time for Woods is EA Sports, which has been producing the Tiger Woods PGA Tour video game every year since 1999. In fact, prior to 1999, EA Sports had been marketing a game called PGA Tour X (X being the year) from 1990 that was subsequently put off the shelf once the Tiger Woods branded game was launched. It has been a mutually beneficial relationship for both. Since EA branded their game with Tiger Woods, it saw its sales increase substantially. While EA benefitted from the revenue, Woods benefitted from the royalty even as he became a more recognised face across the world with this face smiling on the game covers year after year.

Despite the possible forever damnation of Tiger’s name after the scandal, it hasn’t impacted EA’s online golf game. In fact, the 2011 version for the game releases on June 8, even as the demo versions for Xbox 360 and PS3 are already available for download. According to reports, EA saw more than two million rounds of golf played, with 800,000 unique visitors in March 2010 alone in Tiger Woods PGA Tour Online. And that was for the public beta.

All major sports have had a video game to follow them since the early 90s (and some even before). Whether its football, tennis, cricket or basketball; all of them have had a variety of virtual simulations based on them over the years. Golf is no exception. Starting with the humble computers of the early late 80s and early 90s, these games have matured with amazing reality like graphics and gameplay. The platforms too have increased mutlifold, from heydays of Sony Playstation 1 and Nintendo DS to Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii and Playstation 3. There is a Mac version and a mobile version as well today. These games supplement the popularity of the sport in their own way, and the Tiger Woods PGA Tour game has certainly spread the light of golf to many more homes across continents.

India is not far behind as there are scores of simulator based virtual golf courses being set up. One of the largest being the Golfworx in Gurgaon. Standing in front of a high definition screen, golfers of all kinds of skill levels can have a brilliant experience of game using real golf clubs. This not only provides another avenue in revenue generation for golf, but also introduces hitherto uninterested people to the wonders of the game. This is just the beginning as the gaming business is expected to grow manifold with a new gizmo being introduced almost every month!