McIlroy becomes first golfer to share cover with Tiger Woods

Yep… Rory McIlroy will be featured on the cover for EA’s upcoming Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11. It’s quite a big deal considering that 1) it’s the first time the cover has been shared and 2) He’s from Ireland (and yes, I consider it 1 country!). Here’s the cover (click for big)

Here’s there official Release.

Electronic Arts today announced that Northern Irish golfer Rory McIlroy will feature on the cover of the new Tiger Woods PGA TOUR® 11 videogame from EA SPORTS.

McIlroy, currently ranked 9th in the world, becomes the first golfer to share the cover of the top selling videogame with Tiger Woods.  The game will be available on July 9th, on the Wii™, Xbox 360®, PlayStation®3 and iPhone™ platforms.

Marking another first for the game, one of the most prestigious tournaments in golf, the Ryder Cup, will also be featured in Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 11.  Choose from the US or European squad and participate in the various competition formats – foursomes, fourballs and singles.

The Ryder Cup brings together the best American and European golfers in a team competition format, and the cover ofTiger Woods PGA TOUR 11 is a direct reflection of the tournament – as Tiger Woods denotes the U.S. team and Rory McIlroy represents the Europeans.

“This is a huge honour for me to be on the cover with Tiger Woods as I grew up idolizing Tiger,” said McIlroy.  “The Ryder Cup has always been my favourite sporting event, and the tournament is being played at The Celtic Manor Resort in Wales in 2010. Also, I’m hopeful to have an opportunity to represent the European team later in the year – it’s all very special.”

Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 11 will also support Sony’s new PlayStation 3 Motion Controller to give gamers an authentic interactive swing experience. Not only will players have the ability to participate in team play, but they will now be able to take a team online (internet connection and EA account required) via the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.  A first for the franchise, this all-new mode will allow up to 24 players to compete head-to-head as membesr of team.  Team members can also talk strategy with their teammates over Xbox Live or PlayStation Network.

Tiger Woods PGA TOUR 11 on the Wii brings the links to your living room with two all-new enhanced swing mechanics while using the Wii MotionPlus™. The Advanced Plus swing difficulty will read rotation and swing angle while the Tour Pro swing mechanic assesses rotation, swing plane and point of contact.   The Tour Pro swing features an innovative first-person camera angle from the tee box to the putting green called True View.  True View creates the most immersive and authentic golf experience in any video game – you are no longer watching the golfer, you are the golfer!