Play Lee Treuino's Fighting Golf Online

Lee Trevino's Fighting Golf came out for the NES in 1988, published by SNK. It was part of that wave of early sports games trying to capture a real sport on the limited hardware. You don't see many people talk about it now, but it was there, another option next to your Marios and Zeldas.

You control one of four golfers, including Trevino himself, and take them through a round of golf against a friend or the computer. The main goal is straightforward: get the ball in the hole in as few strokes as possible. The game's notable mechanics include a power meter for your swing, where timing is everything, and a wind gauge that you have to account for on every shot. It also has a two-player mode where you take turns, which was the main draw for competing with someone on the couch. The game can feel a bit stiff and unforgiving; a mistimed button press sends your ball veering into the rough or a sand trap. Playing it feels like a careful, sometimes frustrating, back-and-forth where a single mistake can cost you the hole.