The Tiger Woods PGA Tour franchise has long been one of the most popular and successful in golf video games for several years now, presenting realistic golf mechanics and robust features for golf fans the world over. Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 is the latest edition to hit consoles, offering a few new additions as well as some tweaked gameplay mechanics.

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 doesn’t reinvent the franchise, but offers several great new elements. The biggest new addition is the new putting system, requiring a lot of skill and focus when trying to putt on the green, as well as several new courses and the newly-added US Open and the USGA Championship. The biggest new additions are great, but do require that players be pretty comfortable with the franchises mechanics going in, as newcomers may find the changed putting mechanic to be a bit on the difficult side, and the US Open presents some of the toughest courses yet seen in the franchise. Still, if you’re a fan of the series and really want to test your skills, then Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 is definitely worth a look.

The new Precision Putting mechanic in the game adds a whole new spin on putting, removing the focus on distance and requiring players to instead focus on the power they put behind their putting. You use the left thumbstick and pull it down either slowly or quickly in order to determine your strength when connecting with the ball. Using this feature is extremely difficult and requires quite a bit of accuracy, meaning that skilled users will get the most out of it, but many other gamers might find it a bit frustrating and overwhelming. Fortunately for newcomers, you’ll be able to turn on the previous putting mechanic should you be more comfortable with it.

Aside from this, the other big feature is the inclusion of US Open and the USGA Championship. Once again, this is mainly meant for hardcore players, as the courses are extremely difficult and require quite a lot of skill to undertake.

Apart from the two new big features in the game, there are a host of other smaller features in the game. The Live Weather feature lets you take real-world weather and apply it to whatever golf course you happen to be playing through, which isn’t huge, but still adds a bit of a sense of realism.

There is also a new Tournament Challenge mode that lets you play through some historical moments from previous golf events, basically putting you in control of the outcome. This mode also features some interviews with golfers like Woods himself, and golf enthusiasts should get a kick out of trying their hand at classic golf moments.

Graphically, the game looks just as good as it did last year, and doesn’t really boast any new aesthetic improvements. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as the character models look pretty solid, and the environments look great.

The game’s commentary sounds good, with newcomer Scott Van Pelt joining Kelly Tilghman in the booth. While they do a fine job, there are a few instances where the commentary doesn’t quite gel with what unfolds on-screen.

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 adds some pretty cool new features for hardcore fans. However, the added features are still very difficult for those not already used to the franchise’s gameplay mechanics, and are meant mainly for players who are pretty skilled and comfortable with the series.

Gameplay: 8.5
The game’s new putting mechanic is great for huge fans of the franchise, but might be a tad difficult for newcomers. Luckily, you’re able to utilize the putting mode from last year’s game should you want to, which should help those who find it to be intimidating. The inclusion of the US Open and the USGA Championship is also a nice touch, but beginners should try to practice up before taking them on.

Graphics: 8.5
The game looks mostly the same as last year’s model, which isn’t a bad thing. The character models are pretty solid and look like their real life counterparts, and the courses look fantastic.

Sound: 8.0
The new commentary features Scott Van Pelt instead of Sam Torrance, who does a decent job here. The commentary is a bit off at times and there are a few miscalls here and there.

Difficulty: Medium/Hard
Depending on your skill level with the franchise and its mechanics, this game will either feel easy or very tough.

Concept: 8.5
The game’s new putting system and the addition of the US Open are the two main additions to the formula, and offer some pretty nice challenges.

Multiplayer: 8.0
The big new feature for the game’s online portion this year is the “Play a Pro” mode, which lets you post your scores online against those of actual PGA pros.

Overall: 8.5
Tiger Woods PGA Tour isn’t a reinvention of the Tiger Woods franchise, but then again it doesn’t really have to be. The new putting system and the US Open add some great new challenges for fans of the series, giving them plenty of reason to invest.