Tiger Woods may be looking forward to returning to Melbourne for next week's Australian Masters, but it would be a stretch to say the trip has been at the forefront of his thoughts.

The world's greatest golfer admits he knows next to nothing about Masters venue Kingston Heath, other than it is regarded by many Australian players as one of the best courses in the country.

"I don't know a lot about the golf course, other than the guys have generally said its either one or two on their list of venues in Melbourne," Woods said on the eve of the World Golf Championships HSBC Champions tournament in Shanghai.

"I'm looking forward to getting down there for the first time and taking a look a it and seeing how to figure out how to play the course.

"But all of the courses I've seen down there in Melbourne, I've always loved the bunkering, some of the best bunkering in the world.

"From what the guys have said so far, Kingston Heath is no different."

Woods has played three courses on the storied sandbelt - Royal Melbourne at the 1998 Presidents Cup and Huntingdale at the 1997 Masters. He also snuck in a casual round at Metropolitan.

If the Australian Masters was a major, Woods undoubtedly would have done some serious homework about Kingston Heath, but he generally waits until he arrives on site to begin his preparation for regular tournaments.

That's the case this week, where he did not did step foot on the Sheshan Golf club course until the tournament eve pro-am.

That said, he did play at Sheshan two years ago.

Woods heads the 78-man field for the $US7 million ($A7.75 million) WGC tournament, the richest in Asia.

It is the continent's first WGC event, even if it doesn't count as an official victory on the US PGA Tour.

He said he felt an obligation to be a world player and compete regularly outside the United States, though cynics will no doubt note he also has $US3 million ($A3.32 million) good reasons to play in Australia.

"I think its part of the responsibility of us as players to play all around the world," said Woods, who is travelling without his wife and two young children.

"Plus, golf has become such a global sport. There are so many golfers who play at the highest level from different countries now.

"I've always enjoyed coming overseas and getting a chance to play different golf courses and see different things."

Woods and fellow players Phil Mickelson, Sergio Garcia and Y.E. Yang kicked off the festivities Tuesday night at a media event in central Shanghai, where they tried (unsuccessfully) to drive balls across the Huangpu River.

"This is it, the biggest event here in Asia, and for it to be here in Shanghai and with the growth that's happening in China, I think it's just a perfect fit," Woods said.