Rory McIlroy took another step towards taking over from Tiger Woods as the face of world golf when Electronic Arts Inc. announced on Monday that the Holywood star is now the cover star and namesake of its golf franchise.

After 16 years of Woods, the company put the series on hold and did not release a golf videogame in 2014. But from June this year  EA SPORTS™ Rory McIlroy PGA TOUR® will go on sale with four-time Major champion and world No 1 McIlroy signed up to represent what a press release said was "a new generation of players for a new generation of consoles."

“I’m very proud and humbled to see my face and name on EA SPORTS Rory McIlroy PGA TOUR,” McIlroy is quoted as saying. “This is a great honour, and something I couldn’t even dream of growing up playing the sport. I really hope people enjoy the game and I’m very glad I can be a part of it.”

Now for the sales speak:

"EA SPORTS Rory McIlroy PGA TOUR is the first EA SPORTS title to be built using the Frostbite™ engine. This new toolset allows the development team to create beautiful new environments, featuring the most detailed courses in franchise history. Frostbite also renders the entire course at once, eliminating load times between holes and allowing users to play their shot from almost any location. It’s truly Golf Without Limits."

“Frostbite has allowed us to take this franchise to a whole new level,” stated Brent Nielsen, Executive Producer of EA SPORTS Rory McIlroy PGA TOUR. “The new engine drastically improves all facets of the game, from core gameplay to opportunities for brand-new modes and features. We’re looking forward to sharing a lot of great news with our fans throughout the rest of the spring.”

According to the PR men:

EA SPORTS Rory McIlroy PGA TOUR truly delivers Golf Without Limits, opening up the experience like never before. Gorgeous real-world courses and epic fantasy tracks provide players with not only the most realistic representations of their favorite locales, but the opportunity to explore brand-new locations. Full course loading offers limitless options when attacking the green and zero wait times when moving from one hole to the next. Experience the next generation of golf and play where you want, when you want, how you want.

EA SPORTS Rory McIlroy PGA TOUR is developed in Orlando, Florida by EA Tiburon and will be available for Xbox One, the all-in-one games and entertainment system from Microsoft and PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system in June 2015. 

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