WGT Golf News

Excitement builds in the GolfNow Championship as the conclusion of the first Major of the WGT Virtual Tour draws near. Players are not only competing for a large 400,000 WGT Credit purse, but also for points that contribute to overall season standings and ultimately decide who will gain a spot in the December Championship.

Although several notable players have yet to post their Round 2 score on Kiawah, including dansamcam (USA), the Tour Legend tier is currently led by frenchconnect (USA) after firing impressive rounds of 55 and 54 for a two-round total of 109, followed by four players finishing just one stroke back.

Early Tour Legend leaders include:

• Frenchconnect (USA), 109
• Mannyankees (Dominican Republic), 110
• Fmagnets (UK), 110
• jmoney2224 (USA), 110
• CptWomp (Canada), 110
• xXxjasonxXx (USA), 110

In other tiers, LyonWoulds (USA) sits on a large lead in the Legend tier after firing a two-round total of 108, NiFromFb (USA) leads the Tour Master tier with 118, and DCooke11 (USA) in the Master tier with 121.

Round 2 highlights include this impressive approach shot to the Par-4 13th by Tour Legend Mannyankees and this well played shot to the Par-4 18th by Tour Master stevegeorge57.

See Full Leaderboard

Callaway's popular Big Bertha golf clubs are back and now you can play them virtually on WGT.

Get the top-performing Big Bertha Driver and 3 Wood to go longer with more forgiveness.The early reviews are in, and WGT players love the look and performance of Bertha, featuring a white Mitsubishi Fubuki shaft.

The Bertha 3 Wood is getting especially positive reviews, with the extra distance helping you reach more par-five's in just two shots for more eagle chances.

Go #BerthaLong with the virtual driver and 3 woods, unlocking in the WGT Pro Shop...

• Big Bertha Driver (L18+) and Big Bertha 3 Wood (L19+)
• Big Bertha Driver (L88+) and Big Bertha 3 Wood (L89+)
• Big Bertha Alpha Driver (L96+)

See what's new on WGT today, including exciting new WGT Brackets and new virtual golf equipment.

New WGT Golf Brackets

Compete head-to-head against other WGT players in new WGT bracket tournaments. The winner of each match-up advances to the next round, until a final champion is decided. Madness!

We're rolling out this new feature with no entry fees, so be sure to let us know what you think.

Big Bertha is Back

Callaway's popular Big Bertha golf clubs are back, and now you can play the top-performing Big Bertha virtual driver and 3 wood on WGT, plus the new Big Bertha Alpha driver for top WGT players.

Go longer with more forgiveness. #BerthaLong

• Big Bertha Driver (L18+) and Big Bertha 3 Wood (L19+)
• Big Bertha Driver (L88+) and Big Bertha 3 Wood (L89+)
• Big Bertha Alpha Driver (L96+)

Michelob Ultra Beer Ball

WGT welcomes new sponsor Michelob Ultra, and the new Beer Ball on WGT, featuring the first-ever "beer foam" vapor trail, plus extra distance and spin.

Be sure to buy your WGT friends a Beer Ball after your round!

New Nike Avatar

Look your best on the course with the sharp new Nike FI Impact avatar, featuring the new FI Impact golf shoes from Nike, grey pants and a blue swoosh Nike Golf shirt. Available now in the WGT Pro Shop.

Competition is heating up at the first major of the WGT Virtual Tour season, as a record number of participants are all vying for their share of the 400,000 WGT Credit purse at the GolfNow Championship.

Players have until 3/26 to post a Round 1 score. pb1711 (ZAF), CptWomp (CAN) and chop948 (USA) share the early lead among the Tour Legend players with an 18-hole, stroke play score of 53, while the group of contenders just one stroke back includes dansamcam (USA), who has won each of the first two events this season. Joining him with a first-round 54 are ujjbnjk (SWE), bawbag1874 (UK), Tarheelfan83 (USA), Mannyankees (DOM), fmagnets (UK) and jmoney2224 (USA).

Read full coverage on Golf Channel

Play in the GolfNow Championship

Play the Virtual U.S. Open Front 9 Challenge tournament on Pinehurst No. 2 for your chance to win $500 USGAshop.com prizes.

Two players will each win a $500 gift card to USGAshop.com, the player with the top leaderboard score, and another lucky sweepstakes winner chosen at random.

Play Pinehurst Front 9

Famed Pinehurst No. 2 will be rolled out as part of the 2014 Virtual U.S. Open. The Back 9 Challenge is coming in April and the full 18 hole stroke play Qualifier in May.

Now thru Sunday 3/23, get a free Speed-Up Boost when you buy $5 or more WGT Credits.

WGT Speed-Up Boosts increase the speed of your golf ball display in the game to help you play games faster. Note, this does not affect your shots at all, just the display of your ball flight. And you can turn it off anytime in the Game Menu.

We thought this would be fun for WGT players who are following their brackets for the NCAA Basketball Tournament, with 32 games on Thu/Fri and another 16 games on Sat/Sun.

Get WGT Credits

*Special one-time offer for WGT players who buy $5 or more WGT Credits on wgt.com 3/20/14-3/23/14, receive one free WGT Speed-Up Boost (2X).

The Transamerica Classic came down to the wire in February between two WGT veterans, with dansamcam taking home his second consecutive win among the Tour Legend division via a tiebreaker over BolloxInBruges.

The list of players capturing titles in other divisions last month include the following: LyonWoulds (Legend division, 113-shot total), shagadelic (Tour Master, 117), NiFromFb (Master, 118), turtlemtu (Tour Pro, 120) and RoarEMackElroy (Pro, 116).

Each player took home a piece of the overall 200,000 WGT Credit purse, and their winnings have been added to their totals for the overall 2014 points race.

Read full coverage and view final round highlights on Golf Channel

Pinehurst No. 2 is the newest golf course and part of the sixth annual Virtual U.S. Open on WGT.

The Front 9 at Pinehurst No. 2 is now available to play free in closest-to-the-hole games. Be the first to preview this year's U.S. Open course, plus you have a chance to win $500 USGAshop.com prizes.

Play Pinehurst Front 9

Famed Pinehurst No. 2 will be rolled out as part of the 2014 Virtual U.S. Open. The Back 9 Challenge is coming in April and the full 18 hole stroke play Qualifier in May. The live USGA events are in June, including both the U.S. Open and the U.S. Women's Open Championships, the first time both events will be played on the same course in back-to-back weeks.

Scores have been posted and the results are in for the Transamerica Classic on the WGT Virtual Tour in February.

In the Tour Legend tier, two all-time great WGT players battled it out to claim this month's title. The race to the top was between Virtual Tour champion from just last month, dansamcam, a WGT player since July 2009 with 3 million WGT Credit career earnings, and BolloxInBruges, a player since February 2009 with 4.5 million WGT Credit career earnings, and winner of the 2010 Virtual U.S. Open Championship on Congressional.

It couldn't have been closer, as both players matched each other nearly shot-for-shot, with 54 in round 1 and 54 in round 2, for a cumulative total of 108. The decision was left to a tie-breaker that compared each player's Back 9 and then hole-by-hole, with dansamcam just edging out BolloxInBruges for the win to capture his second Virtual Tour title.

Congratulations to all winners and players in the Transamerica Classic at Congressional.

TRANSAMERICA CLASSIC WINNERS - FEB 2014

• Tour Legend: dansamcam, 108 (won in tie-breaker against BolloxInBruges)
• Legend: LyonWoulds, 113
• Tour Master: shagadelic, 117
• Master: NiFromFb, 118
• Tour Pro: turtlemtu, 120
• Pro: RoarEMackElroy, 116

The Virtual Tour overall season standings feature current earned credits from the January and February events. Not surprisingly, dansamcam has jumped into the early season lead within the Tour Legend tier. Players will continue to accumulate Credits each month, and Major events like the GolfNow Championship this month, will offer a double purse of Credits, helping players move up the season leaderboards.

View Virtual Tour Season Standings

The GolfNow Championship is currently underway, with a massive purse of 400,000 WGT Credits. Players have until March 26th to post a Round 1 score on Kiawah Island, host of the 2012 PGA Championship.

Follow Virtual Tour coverage on Golf Channel