PGA Tour 2K23 had a brilliant ranked mode system that engrossed me in the game and made me feel the pressure of a proper day out on the links. With PGA Tour 2K25 coming out in the coming months, I expect the ranked mode will have a range of new features to add more engagement to this brilliant feature.
Today, we’ll review what the community — and us at Operation Sports — think would be great features to see in the new PGA Tour 2K25 ranked mode. The game is coming out soon, so one can only hope they have already considered some of these community suggestions.
Operation Sports’ PGA 2K25 Wishlist
Operation Sports App
Your ultimate companion for sports gaming. Access in-depth coverage, thoughtful discussion, and a community built around the games—and sports—you love.
Your ultimate sports gaming companion.
No 3-Click Swing
One point that keeps coming up in the community is that it’s obvious when people use the 3-Click instead of the Swing Stick. This automatically makes a big difference when two players are facing off head-to-head.
The initial reaction is that players should gravitate toward the swing system that is more consistent and produces more accurate results. This completely changes the game’s playability, and we shouldn’t have to learn a whole new system (and change how we play the game) just to keep in the top ranks.
The No.1 suggestion that players have is to separate the different swings for ranked play. Many people are also calling for the 3-Click system to be removed from ranked play completely.
Other players, including myself, think 3-Click should still be in the game, but that ranked play should be kept on a level playing field where all players have the same approach to each swing.
With the introduction of the Evo-Swing, the need for another swing system will hopefully be unnecessary. But that remains to be seen.
Matchmaking
Another solution to the problem above would be to allow players more control over matchmaking in ranked games. You should be able to pick between cross-play, or against someone who uses a particular swing type. A choice like this would make it more fair across the board, leaving the small advantages people use to only exist in their own circles.
If not, it would be good if you could see what swing type or platform your opponent is playing on before teeing off. An option like this would at least allow you to decide if you want to enter the game with a disadvantage instead of forcing you to participate.
Different Ranked Game Modes
A great addition to ranked play would be a range of different ways to keep each season feeling fresh. Different game modes instead of just head-to-head would allow us to refresh after a tough round, and add depth and diversity to gameplay.
PGA Tour 2K25 has already announced that there will be new daily and weekly Ranked Tour tournaments. We are not sure how exactly these will look, but it’s a welcome change nonetheless.
At the moment, we can only play ranked match play. Introducing a ranked stroke play or stableford would be a fun way to shake up the experience. I do think people would gravitate toward the game mode they like the most (and the most forgiving, i.e match play) but it could be interesting to potentially see different rewards in different game modes, forcing us to switch up our play style.
Ranked Leaderboard/Different Names For The Ranks
Ranked leaderboards would mean that the rank you have depends on how others in the world are doing. This would make it much more competitive, meaning it’s not just about the people you play but about how everyone else is playing as well.
It has announced that the ranked leaderboard in PGA Tour 2K25 will be reset across different seasons. This tells us that the Ranked leaderboard will be dynamic and accurately reflect the best players in the world for each season.
Some of the community members have made the point that there could be more exciting ways to differentiate the ranks in online ranked play — moving from Par II to Par I isn’t exactly exciting. I personally like how the ranks are named after the scores, but there could be a more creative way to make rank progression feel more rewarding.
New And More Exciting Rewards
I’m not going to lie, I loved having the cosmetic rewards for each rank in PGA Tour 2K23, which provided you a different clothing item for each season (hat, glove, shirt, etc.), with that item being a different color based on your rank.
These cosmetic rewards were a great way to flex how high you got in the last season and also show the consistency you had upheld throughout the game’s lifespan. They weren’t the best-looking items, but at least they let us show off.
It has been announced that PGA Tour 2K25 will allow the player to “take on Ranked Matchmaking and compete at the top level for Seasonal rewards and glory,” so it looks as if 2K is taking new rewards into consideration.
I would love to see the rank-themed cosmetics back in PGA Tour 2K25, but I want them to be a bit more flashy and stylish. A cool way to do this could be to add the ranked color and badges to our favorite branded shirts, but I don’t think brands would allow the game to change the color of the clothes. Another cool way would be to add them as badges, allowing us to attach them to the sleeves of our shirts or on our hats.
Again, I doubt we will see this. But a guy can dream, right?
Shorter Shot Timer
The shot clock is beyond generous in PGA Tour 2K23, and it means that if your opponent is AFK, then you have to either wait a while for your next shot, or for them to be kicked. As a consequence, griefing is common in PGA Tour 2K23, and it’s super annoying when it happens. There has been times where the opponent has messed up a hole and then just gives up without quitting, forcing you to sit there idly until they are ultimately booted.
Some nights, I only have an hour to play some games. If I wait five minutes for a player to take a shot, the games can last well over half an hour. This is frustrating as it reduces the number of games I can get through within a limited time frame. I know golf is supposed to be about taking it easy and enjoying the scenery, but waiting for players who aren’t even there is just painful.
A shorter shot clock would mean everyone playing online ranked play is present and engaged. I don’t think it should be heavily reduced to add pressure to the player, but a slight reduction would greatly benefit the experience and keep griefers from ruining your time.
Allow Ranked Play With Friends
One feature that I don’t think will ever be introduced is the ability to play ranked matches with friends. There is a good reason for this — people might abuse this system and use it to rank up without earning their spot. I have a few reasons why this shouldn’t be an issue.
For one, it would still take you a good amount of time to finish the course, even with a friend throwing the hole every time. Do people really have the spare time to do this just to get some small rewards? I don’t think people care enough about this.
Second, if you “farmed” ranks, you will be placed at a standard you can’t compete at. So, when you go to play a real game, you’ll almost certainly lose against your competitors.
So, allowing you to play ranked games against your friends would make each game that much more nerve-racking, adding more excitement to it.
Wider Variety Of Courses
Although there is a range of courses available in ranked head-to-head modes, people love having choices. There aren’t too many courses in the game, so they get old fairly quickly, especially if you’re trying to progress through the higher ranks each season.
A good way to combat this is for 2K to allow some of the best user-created courses to be played in ranked mode. This would open up a spectrum of different environments for players to take on. We all have our favorite holes, but different scenery is always welcome. Especially as there are some excellent user-made courses.
Additionally, people have suggested removing par 3 courses from ranked play. I love par 3 courses, but they don’t provide the same competitive experience as a regular course. I know you only play the In or Out (9 holes) out of the 18, so there is never a set amount of par 3, 4, and 5s. But par 3s are much less forgiving, especially if the other player is doing well.
See Your Ranked Stats
A fun addition would be to allow players to see their stats in ranked matches. It would be both fun and informative to see my win/loss rate against people ranked higher or lower than me. I would also like to see the stats against other consoles or PCs and, most importantly, against the different swing types (which we already hope aren’t in ranked play this year).
Free Camera During Opponents Turn
There’s nothing you can do during your opponent’s turn in PGA Tour 2K23. So, waiting for their shot can be quite boring, especially if they are taking their time (or griefing). Some community members suggested allowing us to have a free camera to explore the course while the opponent takes their swing.
A free-cam would allow you to look around the hole and plan your next shot in more detail, giving you something to do in between swings. This would have a knock-on effect to speed up the round for both players involved, an issue we’ve already discussed.
Ideally, we would also get information on the club the opponent is using, and their swing approach (spin, etc.).
Practice Swing During Opponents Turn
Another fun point would be to do some practice swings during the opponent’s turn. The game allows you to do practice swings on your turn before you shoot, so why not during your opponent’s turn? I’ve even seen real golfers take causal practice swings on the course, so this feature would make ranked play more realistic.
I have to admit that I do waste people’s time taking practice swings when I’m having a bad round. 2K doesn’t even need to put your player in the frame; you could have a mini swing bar in the bottom corner. This would be a great way to get comfortable whilst not wasting your opponent’s time.
Ability To Concede The Hole
If you mess up a hole on PGA Tour 2K23, you still have to play it out (until you hit the shot limit). A feature we want to see is to concede the hole if we mess up the shot and the other player is at a gimme distance.
I do get that the other player could mess up, but if you’ve hit the water hazard twice by accident, it’s all but certain you’re not winning the hole. When this happens to me, I take a load of lazy shots because I’ve lost interest. I would much rather concede and try my luck on the next hole.
More Punishment For Quitting Ranked Games
The community also wants to see a larger punishment for people who quit out of games. Punishments are increasingly more common in online video games because it’s so clear that people abuse them. Therefore, people want to see people who quit lose more rank points and even introduce temporary bans (such as in Marvel Rivals).
People are saying that sometimes, it can even be inconsistent whether the opponent’s quitting counts as a win or not. I don’t think this is true, but people have said there have been cases when the game thinks they have quit out instead. This is super annoying, as you should 100% be awarded a win every time an opponent quits. Regardless, it should be more clear what the outcome is if an opponent quits.
Published: Feb 3, 2025 10:13 am