All of the archetypes in PGA Tour 2K23 has their own strength and weaknesses. Some archetypes are good for other players, while some can be detrimental to their play because everyone has their own playstyle.
Most golfers differ in the ways that they approach the green, so you would need to find the best archetype in PGA Tour 2K23 suited for your playstyle.
We’ll go over all the archetypes, rank them in a tier list, and tell you why they are good so you can find the best archetype fit for your player.
Archetype Tier List
Powerhouse – S Tier
A Powerhouse prides itself on destroying the ball with every swing. However, all that power can be difficult to control, which can result in being further off target more frequently.
Strength: Carry Distance
Weakness: Swing Difficulty
The Powerhouse archetype adds more than just a couple of yards to a player’s drive distance. For a lot of courses, this is insanely good.
There are a ton of 5-par holes where a Powerhouse player can reach the green in two strokes. If they can drive the ball past 320 yards off the tee, they can reach the green with a 3-wood or 3-hybrid for another 250 yards.
However, having less accuracy and tighter swing timings can make the archetype less desirable. Going for perfect swings is already hard enough without having swing difficulty as a weakness.
If you are mechanically good at consistently getting perfect swings, there is no better archetype than the Powerhouse archetype.
For players who are not too confident with their timings, it is best to go with another archetype. Golf is an unforgiving game. If you make a mistake, it will be crucial to your score because it isn’t easy to catch up.
Rhythm – A Tier
A Rhythm golfer may not be able to achieve jaw-dropping distances, but because they put swing quality above all else. They tend to find their target with regularity.
Strength: Swing Difficulty
Weakness: Carry Distance
As someone who uses the Rhythm archetype for about 90% of the time in MyCareer, I would say it is the most consistent archetype and most beginner-friendly archetype on the list.
I can consistently get perfect strokes for a whole course, and the slight timing and swing path mistakes aren’t that serious.
While the carry distance is low, you will have a harder time going for eagles in a 5-par hole. However, you make most of your points by getting consistent birdies in 3-par and 4-par holes.
The swing difficulty might be easy, but one of the best boosts you get on the Rhythm archetype is that your putt weight and putt path skills are also decent.
You will consistently hit the fairway and greens while also making putting easier. Once you have mastered the Rhythm archetype, you will never get a bogey again.
Greensman – A Tier
A Greensman is a specialist with a putter in hand. However, so much time spent on the greens means less time spent reading lies and shaping shots.
Strength: Putting
Weakness: Recovery Shots
The Greensman archetype is the best putting archetype on the list. As you may already know, putting in golf is one of the hardest things to do.
Every uneven terrain will play a big role in your putt path. Reading the path will be extremely hard, but as a Greensman, it gets a little bit easier.
The Greensman is also decent with swing path and timings, which will make your shots a lot more consistent.
With a consistent shot, you will hit the ball on the green closer to the whole, and putting should be a lot easier.
Sculptor – A Tier
A Sculptor is a ball flight artist, bending and spinning their shots with disregard for swing quality both on and off the green.
Strength: Shot Shaping
Weakness: Distance Control
As a Sculptor, adding spin to your shots is much more pronounced. Doing draws or fades becomes a lot easier as well.
The strength of bending and controlling the ball makes it easier for a Sculptor to go around the course and also use their creativity to get closer to the hole while going for the green.
If the hole is near the corner of the green, you have the tools to reach it by adding certain spins to the ball.
If there are hazards such as bunkers or some steep hills near the green, you can also control your shot better and make it land perfectly on the green.
You can put backspins on the ball to avoid any hazards, even on the fairway. You can bend the ball with fades or draws to go around the trees as well.
These are all possible for other archetypes, but the Sculptor is much more precise with the techniques. However, it also depends on your timing and swing path to make this all work.
The Sculptor has a decent swing path, but the timing attribute is atrocious.
You are decent at putting, and you also carry more power than any other archetype except the Powerhouse.
Woodsman – C Tier
A Woodsman is a well-balanced survivalist off the green. However, their skills with a putter leave something to be desired.
Strength: Recovery Shots
Weakness: Putting
The Woodsman is only rated C-Tier because its biggest strength is in the lie range. When you are playing golf, you literally want to avoid these uneven terrains or hazards.
You always go for the fairway or the green. There are some scenarios where you will eventually hit a rough, a bunker, or even the woods.
A Woodsman can still perform well with any lie angles, but how often will you encounter these situations? You are modifying your shots to avoid these situations anyway.
The Woodsman’s other skills are decent, but a weakness in putting isn’t going to help.
How to Change Archetypes
In PGA Tour 2K23, you can freely change archetypes for your player. Go to the MyPlayer screen and press “Golfer.”
Go to the “Archetypes” tab, and you can freely choose any archetype without any costs or consequences.
Final Thoughts
Choosing archetypes is a big way to shape your player’s skill into your play style. When you find ways to improve your player through fittings and skills, choosing the right archetype is still the foundation of any player build.
You can have fittings that can improve your swing path and timing to make it easier for a Powerhouse archetype player to hit the ball perfectly, even if that aspect is their weakness.
You can even add more power to your driver and add a few more yards to a Powerhouse-type player.
Make sure to account for fitting boosts on your clubs and skill builds when you choose a specific archetype.