Who would have thought that Tiger Woods, who has given so much to EA over the years ($670 million gross sales for his video game franchise), would continue to lay sweet, sweet profitable golden eggs even in rain, sleet or snow?  If you don’t know what’s going on with Tiger Woods by now, then congratulations: you have managed to avoid one of the biggest sports soap-operas in the history of ‘people’s lives are being unraveled before the public’s eyes’.  While everyone has their opinion about him, his choices and his legacy, I am not TMZ, so I don’t really feel the need to get into his shenanigans.  I’d rather talk about the potential cash cow that EA is in for when Tiger Woods 2011 releases this June ($$$).

Everyone loves a controversy.  Right or wrong, if all eyes are on you and you retain interest, you or someone else will be able to make a profit off of the attention.  While some, like AT&T, Gillette and Tag, may take the high road and drop or significantly reduce Tiger’s sponsorship.  EA Sports President Peter Moore is a bit more interested in selling video games than worrying about satisfying Tiger nay-Sayers.  And while it may be a happy coincidence that TigerWoodsOnline.com was launched last week and had its open beta mid February (which features and completely FREE online Tiger Woods web-based experience which Peter Moore says had spent “considerable time” in development), it seems like a little too perfect of a time to unleash such a product.  This game features some of the best game play available by a browser that I’ve seen yet.  This is no cheap flash knockoff; it’ll give the ability for cube dwellers and broke people to play Tiger Woods while at work/school/a friend’s house and feel like a true socially distraught sports celebrity.  I’m also very sure that they are getting a few direct or indirect hits from the litany of web searches regarding Tiger’s recent rise in link popularity ($$$).

The show must go on.  Yes, Tiger himself is currently on the links playing golf and giving it all he’s got to prove himself to his fans.  The same must be said for those looking to put some stock back in this legendary athlete: the show must go on, especially in the video game industry where one must strike when the iron is hot to make sure your product stands out in the crowd.  EA has had its ups and downs with marketing but has really stayed as diplomatic as possible while keeping true to the game of golf by limiting the tempting influence of scandal directly, so far (unlike Nike).  EA will undoubtedly beef up and throw as many upgrades, courses and add-ons to this 2011 title as possible, as it is their best chance to reinvent the series and draw in some newcomers that are now fluent in the lifestyle of the main protagonist gracing the cover ($$$).

I have no doubt that Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2011 will be heavily marketed…  But will it be expertly marketed, will again be the main question at hand.  While I feel that even if EA botches the promotion of the game (which at this point would be a feat), it will have more resources devoted to it from its developers, and it will most likely outsell any of its earlier installments.  If EA had anything to do with one of the latest South Park episodes (which I think EA probably signed off on as “EA Sports” was mentioned about 15 times, including full-on logo of the company during the spoof) on Tiger’s situation and the video game PGA Tour 2011, then they are really reaching to make the most out of this scenario.  There were some rumors stating that EA was getting ready to file some paperwork against Matt Stone and Trey Parker (South Park creators); EA stated it was “nonsense”.   Hey, If I was EA, I wouldn’t mind a little more viral controversy and exposure, because we all know where that goes ($$$).

Good luck EA, and I hope you’re handsomely rewarding that galactic superhero who made the ultimate decision to sponsor this prominent sports figure all the way back in 1999.  It’s been a long road to get here, but baby, I get the feeling we’ve only just begun ($$$).