Golf: Tiger arrives in Melbourne

MELBOURNE - World No 1 golfer Tiger Woods arrived in Melbourne today ahead of his first tournament in Australia in 11 years.

Woods' private jet touched down at Essendon Airport shortly after 11am (NZT).

The American is being paid A$3.3 million ($4.2 million) in appearance fees as the headline act for the Australian Masters at Kingston Heath starting on Thursday.

He comes into the Masters off a sixth placing at the World Golf Championships tournament in Shanghai which finished on Sunday.

Woods has only played in Australia on three previous occasions, most recently when he was part of the US team which lost the 1998 Presidents Cup at Royal Melbourne.

Tournament organisers are refusing to disclose where Woods will be staying in Melbourne, citing security concerns.

But he headed straight to Crown Towers in the CBD this morning.

The American superstar has a busy schedule on Tuesday.

He will conduct a private exhibition for 30 people including two young golfers from the Victorian towns of Marysville and Horsham.

The towns were among those worst hit by the Black Saturday bushfires earlier this year which claimed 173 lives.

Woods is scheduled to front a media conference at Kingston Heath in the afternoon and will also be the star attraction at a A$600-per-head gala function at Crown Casino.

- AAP