Swing Away Golf - PlayStation 2

Swing Away Golf also offers an instructional mode on the putting green or driving range for younger players, or perhaps those new to video golf games. The game should be commended on its Story mode, where players begin as an amateur, must qualify to join the tour and then compete in a series of rounds to earn points. These points can be exchanged for better equipment (clubs, shoes, balls), a higher pro ranking and/or enhanced skills, plus new characters and courses can be unlocked, as well.

Cyber golfers can also create their own courses thanks to a bundled editor, which works fairly well. Choose from several course types, shapes, pars, difficulty levels and so forth, as well as popping in ponds, bunkers, trees and more. These can then be saved for later to challenge your friends.

Swing Away Golf's control and feel is remarkable; it fuses arcade gameplay with real physics to make it as fun as it is realistic. The traditional tri-click swing meter is a cinch to learn and responds well.

The only drawback to such rich graphics is the fact that the game frequently pauses the gameplay to load information. This isn't a large problem, but you will expected faster and smoother gameplay from the PlayStation2.

Overall, Swing Away Golf is a solid but not great golf title. Kids with a penchant for golf and parents looking for a non-violent sports game should consider this game. --Todd Mowatt