What have you done with the real Tiger Woods?

ENTERING his 20th Masters, Tiger Woods appears very different from the intense, guarded and ultra-competitive machine he was in past years.

AUGUSTA, GA - APRIL 08: Tiger Woods of the United States reaches for a golf ball on the practice ground during a practice round prior to the start of the 2015 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club on April 8, 2015 in Augusta, Georgia. (Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images) *** BESTPIX ***

IF BODY language and demeanour count for anything, Tiger Woods might very well have a chance to win his fifth Masters green jacket this weekend at Augusta National.

Far from the mental mess he was when he withdrew from the Farmers Insurance Open in February and took an eight-week absence from the Tour to get his body and game together, Woods exuded a confident demeanour yesterday during his first press conference since announcing he was going to play in the 2015 Masters.

“I’m trying to beat everybody out there,” Woods said. “That hasn’t changed. I prepare to win and expect to go and do that.”

Entering his 20th Masters, Woods seems different from the intense, guarded and ultra-competitive machine he was in past years.

We haven’t seen Tiger smiling too much in recent years.

There were times yesterday when he looked like he was closer to the world’s greatest dad than the world’s greatest golfer, taking a break from practicing his short game to hug his 7-year-old daughter, Sam, and 6-year-old son, Charlie. They later served as his caddies for the Par-3 tournament.

Woods also smiled and joked more than normal, saying his 20 Masters appearances leave him just 30 behind Gary Player, and that playing with his kids is making him feel his age (39).

“The good news is my soccer game has gotten a lot better,” he said.

Woods was also sentimental, noting the absence of the Eisenhower Tree on the 17th hole, which was removed before last year’s tournament, and realising his Masters journey began with his late father, Earl, and now includes his own children.

“To now have come full circle and to have a chance to have my kids out there and be able to share that, it’s special,” he said.

Woods clearly appears healthier, happier, and friendlier. But as one onlooker noted, “That’s the Tuesday Tiger. We’ll see what the Thursday Tiger has to say.”

Of course, it’s easier to feel confident and optimistic sitting behind a desk and speaking into a microphone.

Woods walks with his girlfriend Lindsey Vonn, son Charlie and daughter Sam.

The real proof of whether he can contend for the year’s first major title will come during tomorrow’s opening round. Woods has the second-to-last tee time, grouped with Jimmy Walker and Jamie Donaldson of Wales.

Then the world will see whether the 14-time major winner has overcome the short-games woes that plagued him earlier this season when he missed the cut at the Waste Management Phoenix Open after a second-round 82 before withdrawing at Torrey Pines.

Analysts used the dreaded word “yips” to describe his chipping, and some went as far as to suggest Woods might never again be among the game’s elite players.

Woods would have us believe he has conquered his problems.

“I worked my ass off,” he said. “People would never understand how much work I put into it to coming back and doing this again. But it was sun-up to sundown, and whenever I had free time.”

Has Woods the father taken over from Woods the head case?

Forever tinkering with his swing, Woods said he was “stuck right between two release patterns,” a problem that affected his entire game. His surgically repaired back was not an issue.

“I needed to have all facets of my game come around,” he said. “They all have. We’ve spent a lot of time, a lot of work on this and it’s finally paid off.”

That might be a bit premature considering we’ve heard Woods pronounce his game and body healed before, only to watch him struggle. But if there’s any place that brings out the best in Woods, it’s Augusta National. Though the most recent of his four Masters wins came in a playoff against Chris DiMarco in 2005, Woods has finished in the top-6 in eight of his last nine appearances. He did not play in 2014 because of back surgery.

“We as players love it because it’s basically a players’ tournament,” Woods said.

“You go out there and it’s just a player and a caddie and that’s it. There’s something special about that.”

Originally published as What have you done with the real Tiger Woods?