Real World Golf simulator

	Real World Golf simulator
Contact: www.realworldgolf.com Specifications: Utilises latest Gametrak system for Playstation 2. Price: £59.99

Address position with Gametrak/RWG (Pix by QS Images) We all know that awful feeling: Palms are itching and you're aching to get out on course but outside it's either monsoon season or winter snow lies thick and even on the lawn. The nearest break in the weather is on the Continent and you're back at work tomorrow. It's purgatory. But wait, salvation is at hand! Thanks to the latest technology and a little imagination, the genie of the golf lamp is standing by. Real World Golf, which utilises the latest Gametrak system for Sony Playstation 2, means you can tee it up indoors for a one-off, lifetime payment of £59.99 And this doesn't mean sitting at a computer screen using thumb and finger dexterity to execute some complicated manoeuvre with the mouse. Nor will you be risking glassware, crockery or light fittings at the swish of a 3-iron. Having plugged my Gametrak console into the playstation with a USB connection, I could load up RWG and I'm ready to play. If you don't want to look and feel like a plonker in front of the family, best you try it first in solitary confinement with the curtains closed. Pulling on the Steptoe-style gloves, which hook up to the Gametrak via two fine cables, taking my normal stance and gripping the short-shafted facsimile of golf club, might have attracted tears of mirth from non-believers. And it got worse. The game allowed me to choose my photo-fit golfer from a group of potential hackers before I was asked to stand with my hands on my head for a few seconds enabling the machine to calibrate my height. A prank surely? But no, this is all part of the serious pre-round preparation.

Foot control Finally, I could set off for the course, putting gentle pressure on the sensitive mat below my feet to help me move through the menus and options. There are two courses from which to choose and three more to be unlocked as my scores improve. Adding an air of authority to the game is the voice of Peter Alliss, making the whole experience sound so easy and relaxed. Suddenly my on-screen alter ego is standing on the first tee, addressing the ball. So, what do I do next? Utilising my cut-down 'club', I simply stood over the Gametrak console and swung as if on the first tee at my home course, Stoke Rochford, near Grantham. If I closed my eyes I could almost hear the traffic on the nearby A1 rushing by. At first it was difficult not to hook or slice and to get a high percentage quality strike on the ball. But with practice, my technique improved.

Swing in front of the telly To be honest, the course graphics are over simplistic but I soon got the hang of it and was constantly told what sort of percentage strike would get my 'shot' on the green or even near the flag. It was then up to me to execute my swing. When it came to putting the console automatically selected the correct line. Then, it was merely a case of 'feeling the right strength' needed to reach the hole. But hey, if this is all the golf you're gonna get on a wet day, it's much better than no golf at all! The game allows you to play at amateur, semi-pro and pro levels, moving up through the grades. There are also strokeplay, matchplay and tournament options to help retain my interest. The Golfmagic Verdict Rating: 8/10 Summary: Like other Playstation2 games and simulators, this will never replace the touch, the feel, the exhilaration of the sound of a golf ball impacting from steel or titanium and seeing it soar towards its target. And with no smell of newly-mown grass, echo of Fore! from an adjacent fairway or banter from your mates, it lacks that special atmosphere. But it's a great indication of just how advanced technology has become both on and off the course. I'm hooked now and can't wait for the weather to close in again. *Gametrak/Real World Golf will be released at all good video game stores on August 26. *Tell us about the clubs in your bag - as well as the balls, shoes, waterproofs - by submitting a user review And if you've got equipment to buy or sell second hand you can do that too, in our popular classified section.