Tiger Woods PGA Tour 08 - hands-on

That's not saying much considering most experienced Tiger players can shoot in the 50s blindfolded. But after playing several rounds with confidence in play, I've gone entire rounds without bringing the driver out of the bag - my created golfer doesn't believe in himself yet, despite a perfect 110 driving rating.

When aiming a shot, you'll notice the landing area, introduced in Tiger 07. The more skilled you are from with a certain club, the smaller the landing area. This year, confidence will also affect the size of the landing area. If you're an ace with the pitching wedge, the landing area will get even smaller. But if you're not confident, that little white circle will turn into a big red circle and your landing area just got significantly larger. What's worse, if you try and hit an unconfident shot and you are slightly off, the penalty is magnified and you're likely to hook your ball into the woods.

The only way to improve your confidence, however, is to take chances with those red circles and hit a perfect shot. Do so, and you'll feel a little better about yourself the next time you hit a similar shot. Hit the ball in the water, however, and your confidence will sink right along side your shiny new Titleist. 

While a persistent shot tracking system would have been enough to satisfy most hardcore golfers looking for some added difficulty, EA didn't stop there. Draws and fades have been reworked to the shoulder buttons while targeting. Gone is the old Golden Tee mechanic of the diagonal analog swing. Now you can aim the landing zone exactly where you hope to bend the ball. EA is hoping this will entice players to actually use the draw and fade, shots that went somewhat ignored in past years because of the inaccurate analog swing. If you like doglegs, you'll enjoy the new system.