Golf US Masters: Tiger Woods was hampered by a leg injury at last week's Players' Championship in Florida, but insists this will not affect his build-up to the US Masters.

The world number one, determined to win his first grand slam title since the 2002 US Open at Bethpage Black, is spending the next few days at his Florida home where he will complete preparations for next week's event.

"My leg is sore, there's no doubt about that," Woods told reporters after tying for 16th at the TPC at Sawgrass. "Hey, I just go ahead and keep playing."

The 28-year-old added the problem was a sore quadriceps muscle which he injured on the driving range at the Nissan Open in Los Angeles last month.

"Overall, though, I'm pleased with the things that I'm working on starting to come together," he said. "I'm starting to show signs. I just need to replicate it more often.

"I need to hit more fairways, more proper golf shots at the flags, give myself more birdie opportunities because I'm really putting well, just not giving myself enough looks at putts."

By his lofty standards, eight-time major winner Woods has struggled for much of the last 12 months to dovetail accuracy off the tee with his ability to reach greens in regulation.

In 2000, he won three of the season's four majors - two of them in record-breaking style - and ended one of the greatest years in golfing history by setting or tying 27 PGA Tour records.

Last year, however, he was winless in the majors for the first time since 1998 and this season he has been forced to scramble his way around the course with either his driver or his approach play letting him down.

Although Woods won last month's WGC-Accenture Matchplay Championship at La Costa, he never found his best form.

He then faded to a tie for 46th at Bay Hill the following week, his worst finish in five years.

"My swing is good if I let it go and trust it but, when I get out there and I see a little trouble and I've got a little wind and have to hit a shot in play, I don't trust it," said Woods, who had knee surgery 15 months ago.

A significant improvement at Sawgrass last week was that, if he did miss the fairway, it was always to the left.

"That I can deal with," he said. "The two-way miss is not a good way to play golf, so at least I got it singled down to one way.

"It's just a matter of staying behind it and trusting it, because it's in there."

Woods, a three-time Masters champion, will play his first practice round for this year's tournament at Augusta next Monday.

He felt no need to pay an earlier visit to the course because no significant changes have been made to the 7,290-yard layout since last year.

"The only hole they really changed is 11, with the tree line," he said. "It's not like a reconstruction of some of the greens or some of the tee boxes like they did a few years ago."

The change Woods referred to was the planting of 36 pine trees right of the 11th fairway in advance of this year's Masters.

Meanwhile, David Duval, last man to topple Woods from the top of the world rankings and the British Open champion three years ago, will not be making his comeback at the Masters.

Duval, who has crashed to 308th in the world and has not started a tournament since November, says he needs more time to recover from the back trouble that has been plaguing him.

The 32-year-old American held the number one spot for 15 weeks in 1999 and in four successive visits to Augusta from 1998 finished second, sixth, third and second, but has been unable to stop one of sport's biggest slumps.

Duval is a lowly 211th on the US Tour money list with only four cuts made in 20 starts.

It will be the first time he has not played the Masters since he first qualified in 1996.

Meanwhile, former professional skier Simon Yates fired a six-under-par 66 yesterday to take the first day lead in the Asian leg of qualifying for this year's British Open.

The 36-hole qualifying tournament, one of five taking place around the world between January and June, finishes at Saujana Golf and Country Club today.

The top four finishers will qualify to play in the British Open at Royal Troon, Scotland, from July 15th-18th.