PGA Championship Golf 1999 Edition
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Video game development |
| Founder | Vance Cook |
| Headquarters | Salt Lake City , United States |
Key people | Vance Cook (founder and director) |
| Products | PGA Championship Golf 1999 Edition |
PGA Championship Golf 1999 Edition is a golf simulation video game released in 1999, developed by Headgate Studios and published by Sierra Sports for the Microsoft Windows platform. The title includes eight distinct golf courses and introduces the TrueSwing system, which uses mouse gestures to emulate a real-time golf swing experience. Additionally, it features ReadyPlay, a multiplayer function that allows participants to play at their own pace without waiting for others to complete their turns. While the game received acclaim for its diverse content and innovative gameplay mechanics, its commentary was met with some criticism. The follow-up to this release was PGA Championship Golf 2000.
Gameplay
Players can enjoy seven authentic golf courses: Black Diamond Ranch, Coeur d'Alene Resort, Pasatiempo, Pete Dye Golf Club, Prince Course, Royal Birkdale, and Sahalee Country Club, alongside one fictional course named Jocassee Shoals.[1] Each real-world course is introduced with a brief cinematic overview.[2] The included Course Architect feature enables users to design personalized courses incorporating features such as hills, valleys, trees, and ambient sounds.[1]
The game offers a total of 12 playing modes, including formats like four-ball, match, scramble, and skins, as well as a practice mode.[1] Users can play as professional golfer Tom Lehman or various default characters, with the option to create custom players by selecting attributes such as gender, skin tone, hairstyle, and headwear. The AI opponents adjust their playstyle dynamically in response to the player’s approach, providing a progressively challenging experience. Players may also assign club selection duties to an in-game caddie who analyzes shot data to recommend optimal clubs.[1] Instead of a conventional aiming system, aiming is performed by rotating the golfer model.[3] Swing execution can be performed using either the traditional three-click method or the TrueSwing mechanic that captures mouse movements to simulate a natural swing.[4][5][1] Putting is managed through a grid overlay on the green for enhanced accuracy.[1] The game supports mulligans and gimmes,[2] and players can select from various post-shot animations including expressions of frustration.[6] Commentary is delivered by Mark Lye and Grant Boone.[4] Multiple camera perspectives are available to enrich the gameplay experience.[6][2]
Multiplayer functionality accommodates connections via modem, LAN, and WON.net. The ReadyPlay feature allows participants to play concurrently without having to wait for others’ turns.[1]
Development and release
In July 1998, Sierra Sports entered into a partnership with PGA Interactive to develop PGA Championship Golf 1999 Edition, aiming for an October launch. Headgate Studios, led by founder and director Vance Cook—who brought experience from working on the Links series and Sierra’s Front Page Sports: Golf—developed the title with an emphasis on realistic golf simulation.
To faithfully reproduce the courses, Cook’s team utilized aerial surveys combined with photogrammetry techniques, complemented by on-site photography capturing terrain details and clubhouse architecture. Each course took approximately three to four months of development time by a small Salt Lake City-based team. The fictional Jocassee Shoals course was constructed using the in-game Course Architect tool. Character animations were created with 400 distinct motions and models composed of up to 20,000 polygons. The TrueSwing system was refined from earlier versions to provide more precise swing control.
Sierra Sports announced completion of the game on May 20, 1999. Shipments began in North America later that month with retail availability starting June 1 for Microsoft Windows. The Sierra Sports Golf Association—operated through WON.net—hosted online tournaments and fostered community interaction. Players could also share custom-designed courses made with Course Architect; by July 1999, over 35 user-created courses were accessible on WON.net. The UK release occurred by September 1999, followed by a reissue under the Sierra Originals budget label in August 2000.
Reception
According to the review compilation site GameRankings, the title garnered generally positive feedback.
While some reviewers considered the gameplay less impressive compared to the Links, Jack Nicklaus, and PGA Tour franchises, Ewan MacDonald of Eurogamer favored it over the Links series and ranked it among the superior golf simulations available. Mike Snider from USA Today described the game as "intriguing, but not of championship stature." William Abner of Computer Games Strategy Plus referred to it as "an enigma," highlighting its outstanding swing mechanic, robust course design tool, and captivating gameplay, yet feeling it was somewhat incomplete. Brett Todd from Computer Gaming World labeled it as unmemorable.
The graphical presentation received mixed reactions; some reviewers commended the visuals, though they were frequently considered less advanced than those in the Links and Jack Nicklaus titles. MacDonald characterized the graphics as a "peculiar blend" of 3D and 2D elements. Gordon Goble of CNET Gamecenter found the visuals realistic but criticized the color palette as dull. Observers pointed out monotonous and similar-looking courses, immobile crowds occasionally blocking sightlines, and caricatured golfer models lacking facial detail. Certain animations were faulted for being choppy or exaggerated, whereas others praised the authentic golfer movements and ball physics. Opinions differed on whether the game's physics surpassed those featured in the Links series.
The audio design was generally well-received; however, commentary attracted widespread disapproval for its repetitiveness, inaccuracies, and tendency to diminish gameplay tension. Critics remarked on commentators’ uncanny ability to foresee ball trajectories and their inconsistent suggestions. While some found the commentary helpful, others regarded it as the weakest element of the game. Additionally, crowd reactions were noted as not always matching on-course events.
The innovative ReadyPlay functionality earned broad acclaim for accelerating gameplay by enabling players to act concurrently, despite occasional visual obstructions and stray balls causing frustration.
The game’s diversity and TrueSwing system were highly praised. Abner identified TrueSwing as the primary selling feature, while House dubbed it the "Holy Grail of golf simulation." Rosano lauded its natural feel, and Capell emphasized its depth alongside ease of use. Conversely, the three-click swing method was perceived as simplistic and somewhat superficial.
Most critics found the Course Architect tool user-friendly, though some felt overwhelmed by its numerous options. While applauded for its accessibility and flexibility, limitations such as the inability to create holes that cross water disappointed certain users. Stability problems were reported, including crashes during course creation and online play via WON.net; these issues persisted months post-launch but were anticipated to improve with future updates.
By April 2000, sales in the United States had reached 48,105 copies.
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