Year in and year out, Tiger Woods has shown dominance in the video game world, ever since his golfing game series struck gold in 2002. With the release of Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2003, EA Sports had solidified the gameplay uniquely by utilizing the left analog stick for power, distance, and accuracy. This simple yet elegant gameplay had me hooked for hours, even all the way through last year's installment of Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2005. Now here comes 06, which could very well be the last installment for the current generation as Tiger picks up his golf bag and heads for greener pastures on the Xbox 360 later this year. Is this the way we wanted the series to leave us? Well, yes and no. I tend to think back to Bill Murray's "Cinderella story" scene from Caddyshack. Is there virtually a reward? No, but you smile anyway. "It's in the hole!"

Like previous installments, Tiger Woods 06 leans heavily on presentation, giving you a number of options right off the bat. Thankfully, EA Sports has done away with the option of putting you through the obligatory practice modes right up front and instead lets you choose your path right away, either beginning a new career with your own custom built golfer through GameFace or letting you choose your own PGA-powered golfer for a quick round of 18 through a number of other modes. There's a lot to do here, but the main thing you'll want to dive into first is Rivals Mode.

Rivals Mode is a sweet little trip back through the history of golf. Sure, you may think to yourself, "Why the hell would I want to see what golf was like earlier last century?", but hold on. The game actually lets you challenge some of the best golfers in existence in their prime, which means you travel back in time to take them head on when they really had the skills, instead of pitting you against them at an older, less-advantaged age. This is a novel idea, and the presentation behind these older courses have some stylish touches, like spectators who manage to sport the Abraham Lincoln look (I guess it was all the rage, eh?) and clean-cut courses without all the high-tech hubbub we know it for today. This mode will keep you busy for some time and help you prime up your skills for greatness.

Another mode worth mentioning is the game's Skills 18 mode. Like the arcade mini-games that were put in for the past few years, this will help you improve your putting and other skills in the game, with the help of little neon-lit circles on the ground. Think of it as the funkiest putting green you've ever seen. It's nothing deep but it does allow you to get some practice on the links and build up your putting skills. You'll need them as well, as the putting game has drastically changed this time around.

Well, not ENTIRELY, but let me explain. See, in previous editions of Tiger Woods, you were given a simple path of the ball and where it was currently headed if you stayed on your current course. This allowed you, in the past, to guide the ball marker for precision and timing. (And, of course, the caddy's directions helped, too.) This year, EA bumped up the challenge a little by introducing a new grid system and getting rid of the path marker, forcing you to adjust a little bit in terms of your power and precision. It's a nice touch, and there's also a neat feature where, if you hit the A button, you still get an idea of the path of the ball, so you can still adjust. And Tiger Vision is gone, seeing how it was too easy to complete those long putts, anyway. Whew.

Not all is right in the gameplay tweaks, however. For the general golf swing, EA has introduced what's known as a "shape stick". This allows for the use of the right analog stick to get your fade or draws put in, as you can mark precisely where you're going to contact the ball. However, this system did nothing for me, not like the previous gameplay system did. It just feels gimmicky, and if you do manage to execute the swing you want, it's very seldom. I just struck with the tried and true system of swinging the left analog stick, and then adjusting with the black button (for power on the backswing) and the white button (to control the spin of the ball). Fortunately, that part of it still works pretty well. I was expecting more from the dual analog system than this, so it's slightly disappointing.

GameFace has also seen a little bit of tweaking, but it's practically useless. The customization features are still plentiful and allow you to build your dream golfer, or even yourself in the guise of a PGA pro. But the programmers found it necessary to add a voice alteration system, and, really, it doesn't make too much sense. Sure, your golfer talks after swings about how good or bad a shot was, but it doesn't seem to be that well realized. Unless you're up for using it for a comical effect (like making your golfer talk like Michael Jackson and scaring the caddies), I'd avoid using it and just stick with the general GameFace features.