Woods, sidelined eight months after having surgery on his left knee, said his ball-striking was superb at Doral, where he finished tied for ninth, and his putting near perfect in winning at Bay Hill two weeks ago in his third test event.

Facing a standing room only media crowd at Augusta's gaping interview room, he sounded like he had never been away.

'Always', Woods told reporters when asked if he expected to win the year's opening major starting on Thursday.

Woods had to rebuild strength and regain flexibility in his knee after his reconstructive surgery but no therapy was needed for his confidence. 'You enter a tournament to win,' he said.

In Woods's absence, Ireland's Padraig Harrington has done all the winning in the majors, successfully defending his British Open title and adding another major at the PGA Championship.

Woods said he watched from home on television during his recuperation, 'on the couch, elevated with ice,' wishing he could be swinging the golf club with them.

Woods, winner of 14 majors, said he could imagine the young players' excitement at their maiden Masters.

'The coolest thing in the world was obviously seeing my dad there, which I don't have anymore,' he said about his father, Earl, who died in 2006, and the emotional hug they shared after the last hole.

'Every time I see that, I get a little weak thinking about that moment, because it was a very important moment in my life to have him there,' said Woods, whose father came against doctor's orders after having heart surgery and gave his son a putting lesson that paid off in a major triumph. -- REUTERS