While this isn’t ideal, it is the approach 2K has taken with most of its sports titles since the PS5 launched. So, you will just have to pay that extra bit of money. Though PGA 2K21 technically had real pro golfers, they were only your competition; you couldn't play as them, which felt weird. PGA 2K23 remedies that. Led by cover star Tiger Woods, 2K23 has a bunch of well-known PGA golfers, including Justin Thomas, Collin Morikawa, Tony Finau, and Will Zalatoris. It also has LPGA stars like Lexi Thompson and Lydia Ko. And hey, it even has golfers who defected to the controversial LIV Golf League like Open champ Cameron Smith. 2K has already stated that it won't remove any LIV golfers from the game, but it's still a bit funny since they are banned from PGA Tour events. At least those guys can still compete at The Players Championship and in the FedEx Cup… just not in real life. The mode that Topgolf adds to PGA Tour 2K23 is ideal for social play and introducing friends to different clubs. Thus, Topgolf is a natural partner for this game. The game can be played on a Topgolf range, which is basically a driving range with targets, and the farther away the targets, the higher your potential score. To earn more points, the game will also require the player to hit specific targets. I could envision this becoming an issue for someone who plays a lot of rounds online. Courses can have firm greens, rainy conditions, lengthy layouts, or any number of quirks that set up better for longer carry distances, more spin, more roll, etc. You could theoretically use up all of your stat boosts and consider spending real money if it helps you enough. Unlike fittings, this new feature doesn't feel aligned to gradually making your golfer better--it's just one of the annoyances that plagues modern sports games with online communities. It's still too early to say if these consumables will contribute to a pay-to-win model, but they feel at odds with PGA Tour 2K23's dedication to realism. After all, your golf ball attributes should be connected to the brand and model of ball. From there, you move on to the archetypes, and it is advised that you start by using your strengths in the game. Rithim is a good place to start if you are new to the game, giving you the most forgiving swingpath. Puttpath and swingpath are the most important attributes to consider as a new player. Another good option would be greensman which also gives a good balance toward the middle.

To play this game on PS5, your system may need to be updated to the latest system software. Although this game is playable on PS5, some features available on PS4 may be absent. See PlayStation.com/bc for more details. For the first time, play as male and female pros including Tiger Woods, in online and local play. Also features licensed courses such as East Lake Golf Club, TPC Sawgrass, TPC Scottsdale, and more.When you buy new clubs in real life, you often get a club "fitting," to see what works for you. In 2K23, fittings are essentially modifications to specific clubs to alter your stats--they can make a big difference. You earn these by defeating your "rivals" in tournaments, but you can also buy them in the in-game marketplace. Yes, this has the potential to mimic NBA 2K's MyPlayer system in which you can pay to get a better player. That said, I've earned plenty of fittings through the solo career mode and feel as if my golfer is gradually getting better. Paying to have the best stats right away doesn't appeal to me, but it could make playing online somewhat annoying down the line. Overall, I see the Fittings as a way to incentivize playing through multiple seasons of MyCareer.

Steph Curry is one of two NBA legends who are playable golfers in PGA Tour 2K23; the other is Michael Jordan. Image: HB Studios/2K Sports First, you are shown how to set up your player and your appearance. You can edit your entire face. and then type in your name. Noah, Steve (2023-03-21). "PGA Tour 2K23 Adds Payne's Valley - 19th Hole Playable in 3-Hole Matchmaking". Operation Sports . Retrieved 2023-05-10. For some reason, the MyPlayer creation system doesn’t allow you to adjust your body type. But it’s otherwise a robust character creator with a good array of options. Image: HB Studios/2K Sports Moving toward the FedEx Cup means dealing with HB Studios’ weak point: The dismal quality of its attempt to recreate the atmosphere of televised golf. It’s not bad so much as utterly broken in places. Commentators make the wrong calls regularly, such as failing to identify when a ball is or isn’t on the green or whether it’s trailing left or right. Attempts to show replays from earlier in the tournament take excessive time to load in this era of SSDs (and chug further when trying to reach the server sometimes), and when they do show up they frequently don’t actually show anything. Rather than following the ball, these snippets stay on the golfer reacting to an unseen shot, but at least the character models justify that lingering attention. Coming from 2K, whose emulation of NBA broadcasts set a best-in-class example, PGA Tour 2K23’s non-functional delivery annoyed more than helped once I got past the first match’s introduction.

Don't waste your XP into skill trees for clubs that you hardly use, it is more beneficial to prioritize developing the attributes and leveling up the tiers of your essential clubs, these will be your driver, irons, wedge, and putter. PGA 2K23 is great for solo mode against the CPU pros in MyCareer, but Online Societies is what will likely keep golfers on the course. It's hard to say much about Online Societies in 2K23 since the game is in its infancy, but 2K already has its official society up and running with active tournaments. You can create your own societies–basically clubs–to play alongside your friends, or join one of the many other societies that cater to all skill levels. Online Societies offers an easy way to compete on the course against other golfers without having to actually go head-to-head at the same time. Playing in tournaments is a good way to earn virtual currency from purse prizes.