Drive, chip, and putt. The four fundamentals of golf and who can honestly say that they don't love the game of golf? Well now you can take all the enjoyable aspects of golf with you out on the road with the latest Tiger Woods title for the PSP. EA is bringing Tiger and all his PGA pals for another round on Sony's handheld. Like most sport games you can only improve on so many features from the previous version but EA certainly does just that with this latest title. EA went back to the caddy and asked for some advice how to improve the game and they came out with some solid features for the game such as the all new Swing Path Meter, mini-games, and a deep create a golfer mode for the PSP version of the game.

Gameplay

Golf is all about relaxing and just enjoying yourself. After a hard week of work what is better than hitting the links and shooting a round of 18? I mean a lot of business men have a little green on their floor so they can sink putts during the long work day. I know I do. Well now you can take the pleasure of shooting 18 holes of golf with you on the go with the latest Tiger Woods title for the PSP. This year’s version is a huge step-up from last yrs with the new modes and overall more polished gameplay. With gameplay modes like Quickplay, PGA Tour, Career Mode, mini-games, multiplayer, and the deep character profile option this game has something for everyone fan of golf.

Quick Play is the most basic and straightforward mode of the title. Players can select from stroke play, match play, and several other modes. Stroke Play is the most commonly used mode since you shoot for the lowest score on the course. New to this title is the new way to swing the club. Players will now move the analog stick down to bring the club back then move it up forward quickly to generate power to hit the ball as far as possible. It is simple to use, intuitive, and a nice addition to the title. There are also several single player modes you can partake in such as previously mentioned match play, skins, and stableford.

But say you want to play with some people on the green and see how you fair against your friends or against players from around the world? Well EA has you covered with both a local ad/hoc and a full fledge online mode. There are ranked matches and unranked matches of stroke play so you can see how well you do against other golf fanatics. There are also several other modes including match play, skins, shooting gallery, and bingo bango bongo. If you grow tired of the traditional golf game then bingo bango bongo is just what you need to play. Bingo Bango Bongo is played like this, First ball on the green (Bingo): 1 point, then Closest to the pin once everyone is on the green (Bango): 1 point, then First ball in the hole (Bongo): 1 point. After you finish a round the winner gets to take a club out of the opponent's bag, mixing the game up. So be quick to the shot but also be accurate. This is a lot of fun online and it runs very smoothly online as well. No major lag issues of any kind. If you have played this game in real life you'll see it in a different light once you get a chance to play it online with some really hardcore golf players.

One of the features that has made its return is the deep character creation mode. Despite it not being quite as deep as the console counter-parts it is a very deep system for a portable title. EA has included enough options to this mode that you can make your character look are realistic as you want to your true figure or as far fetched as possible. Another nice addition is the ability to be able to change your appearance anytime you want to within the game. You can change your golfers clothes, appearance, add rings, watches, hats, or whatever you can think of. After each round of golf or challenge you complete you will gain attribute points, which will be based on your performance. So the better you do the better you can make you player after the round or challenge is completed. Players will be able to use the attribute points towards their golfer’s power, accuracy, putting skills, short game, luck, drive, and more. Besides gaining points you'll also gain money for each victory so you can buy new clothes and equipment for your golfer. Since we all know equipment is key to success in any sport. The better the driver you have the farther the ball will do.









Exclusive to the PSP version of the title EA included several mini-games. A shooting gallery and putting frenzy. In the shooting gallery you have to hit certain targets and you'll gain points when you hit the target correctly. Very simple but fun mini-game. The putting frenzy takes you to different courses and even Central Park to putt and putt. Putting is the hardest part of golf so this mini-game actually turned out to be quite fun and addicting.

Graphics

Tiger Woods 07 looks very very solid on the PSP and like most EA titles for the system they have a lot of little details that give it a deeper look. The courses all look very crisp and clean and full of details from the surrounding trees down to the shortest grass on the green. The courses are very similar to their real life identicals which is amazingly done on the PSP hardware.

Control

The game controls are easy and not difficult by any means. The swing with the analog stick is a very easy transition and you won't even realize the change it’s such an easy move. The only concerns are the controls for putting. It can be very tedious to line-up a putt when there is a slope to the side or a small hill. Since putting is all about small details and being extremely accurate it can get tedious at times but you'll adjust after a few times. Aside from that problem the game is easy to control and navigate with on the PSP.

Overall

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2007 is very solid golf title for the PSP and shouldn't be passed up by any portable golf fans. With the new control schemes for swings and the deep character creation mode hardcore fans will stay busy for quite sometime. Casual fans will love the mini-games, single player modes, and the online ranking games.