Golfers Rickie Fowler and Rory McIlroy prevailed in a three-week vote-off to determine the co-stars of the cover of Tiger Woods PGA Tour 13, which will be the second game in the series' 15-year run to feature a second golfer in addition to Woods.
McIlroy, who charged upon the international golf scene with a dominant performance at the U.S. Open (and a memorable fade at The Masters), easily won, 54 percent to 46 percent, against Luke Donald to appear on the cover of the PAL version of the game. McIlroy appeared alongside Woods on all versions of Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11 (pictured at right).
Oklahoma State alumnus Fowler, the world's No. 1 amateur golfer for 36 weeks from 2007 to 2008, prevailed over Bubba Watson, 51 percent to 49 percent to win a spot on the versions distributed in North America and other NTSC nations. Fowler, like Watson, appeared in the previous edition of the game.
Woods has been, expectedly, the cover star for all titles in dating back to 1998, though his star has fallen since 2009. No longer the world's No. 1 ranked golfer, and winless since that time, both he and Electronic Arts have endured speculation that the series should de-emphasize or shift away from him. Last year's Tiger Woods PGA Tour 12: The Masters was notable for featuring on its main retail edition a shot of Woods—small and facing away from the camera—driving hole No. 12 at Augusta National, the first time the fabled course has appeared in a video game. A collector's edition for the PS3 featured a closeup of Woods.
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