newz article: Golden Tee video golf game

Archived from groups: rec.games.video.arcade.collecting (More info?)

This was featured in the local newspaper. I was kinda shocked they
talked about video games.

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Golden Tee video golf game has taverns-full of loyal fans
By MIKE COLIAS

A player finesses a chip shot on Golden Tee, which has quietly become
the most successful pay-for-play video game in the past decade.

Art Chernobrov peers down a blazing green fairway, his brow furrowed in
concentration, feet slightly staggered, and lets rip.
Lunging his palm forward, he delivers a thunderous "thwack!" to the
Golden Tee video game machine's trackball, sending his digital ball
soaring 370 virtual yards before stepping back for a swig of his beer.

"We'll probably play until 2 a.m., or whenever they kick us out," said
Chernobrov, a 32-year-old computer analyst who estimates he plays the
game 12 to 15 hours a week at a suburban Chicago bar.

Golden Tee has become the most successful pay-for-play video game of
the last decade. The game's maker, Incredible Technologies
www.itsgames.com) of Arlington Heights, Ill., has landed on a
demographic as wide and inviting as a lush fairway: Men ages 21 to 35,
who like golf, drinking beer and trying to beat their buddies.

The company estimates some 10 million people will play this year on its
100,000 machines in sports bars and taverns worldwide. Players spent an
estimated $400 million on the games last year. Golden Tee can be
lucrative for players too - with some earning as much as $30,000 in
prize money last year.

The company has doled out some $14 million in winnings since it started
monthly tournaments in 1996 by uploading scores from bars to computer
servers at its suburban Chicago headquarters.

For die-hard players like Chernobrov, the game has transcended hobby to
serve as a social nucleus: Guys meet up for a night of Golden Tee as
they would go out to shoot pool or bowl.

"I look through my cell phone and almost all the speed-dial numbers are
Golden Tee guys," Chernobrov said.

Golden Tee has a realistic feel. Players must bend shots around trees
and rocks, gauge winds and decide whether to use backspin. The courses
are filled with verdant palm trees, shimmering sand bunkers and steep
mountains.

Through trial and error, top players find loopholes to shave strokes
off their score.

"There's always a creative way to get to the hole," said elite player
Stephen Dakin, 37, a piano player from Wellington, Fla., who earned
$28,000 in prize money in 2003. "That's what makes it so fun."

This spring, Incredible Technologies launched its fourth version:
Golden Tee Live. It uses wireless technology to create real-time,
50-player tournaments around the world.

Chernobrov and his buddies in Naperville one recent night were
competing against players at bars in places like Akron, Ohio; Everett,
Wash., and Ontario, Canada.

The new version changed the prize format too: Rather than monthly
tournaments, players pay a $1 entry fee with the chance of winning up
to $10 if they beat the other 49 players. The top 20 players get their
dollar back.

Players are identified by slipping their credit card into the machine.
They can charge their round, pay cash or tap into their Golden Tee
account.

While some elite players lament they won't win as much under the new
system, the format should give hackers an incentive to improve, said
CEO Elaine Hodgson, Larry's wife.

The new version also adds some bells and whistles, including
shot-by-shot commentary by golf broadcaster Jim Nantz.