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The Loop

Another surprising Tiger twist, Woods now expected to play Par 3 contest

April 07, 2015

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Certain things you can expect at the Masters: A champions dinner Tuesday night, a trio of icons teeing off Thursday morning, and Tiger Woods nowhere to be found on Wednesday afternoon.

Or at least that used to be the case. Consistent with his freewheeling mood in his return to golf this week at Augusta National, Woods said he will play the annual Par 3 contest with his two kids, Sam and Charlie, as caddies.

"As I said, this tournament means so much to me . . . To now come full circle and have a chance to share it with my kids, it just means the world to me," Woods said.

Woods, who was seen joking around the putting green after his Tuesday practice round with 7-year-old Sam, 6-year-old Charlie and girlfriend Lindsey Vonn nearby, hasn't played the Par 3 since 2004 -- presumably because he didn't want to disrupt his pre-tournament preparation.

And you'd think if ever there was a year that Woods would definitely want to steer clear of showcasing his short game, it'd be a year in which his struggles around the greens have been well chronicled. But Woods has already appeared to be of a different mindset at Augusta National, hugging players en masse, and looking quite confident with a wedge in his hand.