Tiger Woods has been replaced by Rory McIlroy on cover of popular 'PGA TOUR' video game

Electronic Arts announced today that Rory McIlroy is the new face of their popular golf video game franchise, "PGA Tour" and the world's top-ranked golfer will be on this year's cover (seen at right).

The move is significant because it means Tiger Woods is no longer associated with the game that has carried his name since 1998.

EA Sports had been minimizing Woods' presence in recent years. In 2011, Woods was replaced by a flag from The Masters. The following year Woods shared the cover with Rickie Fowler, and last year Tiger graced the cover along with Arnold Palmer.

However, in all of those years, the game was still called "Tiger Woods PGA Tour." That is no longer the case.

"I'm very proud and humbled to see my face and name on EA SPORTS Rory McIlroy PGA TOUR," said McIlroy. "This is a great honor, and something I couldn't even dream of growing up playing the sport."

Here is the official trailer for the video game:

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