Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2007 is so close. The perfect Wii control scheme? Almost. The best analog swing system? Just about, but putting is still a pain. The graphics have been kicked up to 480p and include widescreen support, but I know the Wii can put out prettier games than this. The multiplayer modes are here and excellent, but there's no way to play them online. Still, it's better to reach for heaven and stumble than drag your feet and release the same title with only the most minute changes year after year, so I salute EA for what it's done with its first Wii golf game.

For starters, the game features a very solid implementation of the Wii Remote technology. Holding A brings you into the aiming interface. Then press B and you can manually adjust the "aiming circle." This was introduced in the next-gen versions, simply a circle that indicates your target zone and which grows smaller and smaller as your golfer's accuracy improves. Being able to manipulate it with a simple drag and drop makes a complex system very approachable, a nice touch for a Wii title. Holding the Remote like a club, it's easy enough to smack your shots across the course. With the correct grip, you'll be getting just the right hook or slice to your shots in no time. Press B, then swing and release B: Nothing could be simpler!


Unfortunately, the devil lurks in the details. Full-power shots are simple enough, but if you want to take a shot with a bit less passion and a bit more "beat par," two things might stop you. First, there isn't a power gauge as you swing. This makes it very tough to get anything but a slam or a tap on your ball. It's surmountable, but also an unnecessary difficulty that could have been solved with a simple option to turn the feedback on or off.

Second, if the Wii Remote responded on a one-to-one level with your motions the lack of a gauge might not have been such an issue. But it doesn't: it's actually really tough to get the Wii Remote to respond with anything other than a slam or a tap. Not impossible, but hard. The motion-sensing scheme is still a good system, with leagues of depth, but I'm glad the game offers another option.

That option is playing with the Nunchuk (instead of the Wii Remote) for your swing control. This lets you adjust the aiming circle using the Remote, identically to the Wii Remote swing controls, but actually control your swing with the Wii Nunchuk's analog stick. This actually makes for the best version of the series' analog swing controls, and even if all you do is use it so you can sit down and play now and then, it's a nice option to have. Putting with either control variant can be as hair-pullingly frustrating as ever, but it's still just as sweet when you sink one.