Q&A: Tiger Woods' coach Hank Haney
— -- Tiger Woods says that bringing his swing coach Hank Haney into this year's version of his video game Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09 was a way to let players get closer to the feeling of being a real golf pro. "It was my idea," Woods says. "He has never been in a video game, so for him to be a part of it the first time, he was pretty excited."
I talked with Haney about his part in the game.
Q: Talk about what the virtual Hank Haney does in Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09?
Haney:It's like what I do in real life when I coach. I analyze their game and help improve their skills. I analyze how they played and offer some drills and suggestions they can use to get better. Tiger asked me and it was one of the ideas EA Sports had to make the game better and more fun. They want to make it so everyone can play and enjoy it more and giving people some coaching is a natural way to do it.
Q: So is there a plan for you to do a possible motion capture session for next year?
Haney:I'd like to see my swing. Whenever you look at that motion capture swings like Tiger's, it's always interesting and you can pick something up.
Q: With the Wii version of the game you can actually try swinging as you would on a golf course. Would you recommend that?
Haney:It's fun either way. You can try to do a real golf swing or you can just move the controller and hit the shots that way. Some people swing like they are really golfing and some swing with whatever they have got. If you are not a golfer, it's a way to learn one, too. They can have a little taste of golf. A game like this is phenomenal for the game of golf in general.
Q: I would think playing the game would be a way to learn better strategies for managing real golf courses. Any specifics you would recommend to golfers looking to improve their actual golf skills?
Haney:One thing is just paying attention to the way the wind is blowing. A lot of times people don't adjust their aim or they don't even really take full notice of the conditions. Are you hitting into the wind? Is the wind coming across? Is it an uphill shot or downhill shot? How far do you have? People when they golf don't really know exactly how far they are from the hole and all these things are kind of pointed out to you in the game and you realize that it makes such a difference in the way you play. I think people will realize, 'Hey, that's something I ought to pay attention to in my regular golf game.' It will end up helping their game.
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