AUGUSTA, Ga. >> Is this really the same Tiger Woods who intimidated a generation of competitors and froze out an endless array of people outside his inner circle?

This Woods, the one who calls himself a “walking miracle” because of his return from spinal fusion surgery, was relaxed, funny and open Tuesday during his 30-minute session with the media at Augusta National.

Woods, seeking his first Masters victory since 2005, will tee off at 10:42 a.m. Eastern Thursday with Australian Marc Leishman and Englishman Tommy Fleetwood. His Friday tee time is 1:27 p.m.

Here are some takeaways from the Q&A:

>> Woods, 42, said that before he agreed to undergo the fusion surgery last April, he figured: “That’s pretty much it. I’ll have a nice, comfortable and great life, but I’ll never be able to swing the club like I used to speed-wise. There’s just no way.”

Yet his swing speed of 129 mph off the fourth tee at last month’s Valspar Championship near Tampa, Fla., was the fastest recorded on the PGA Tour this season.

“It’s crazy … I’m hitting speeds that I would hit in my prime, and that’s shocking,” he said. “I’m north of 120. I’m cruising at 120. For some reason it has come back. I wish I could tell you. I wish I knew. If I can maintain this, I can play out here for a very long time.”

>> Woods said he has strengthened his legs and core with non-weighted activities such as swimming. His practice sessions are now an hour, rather than three to four hours in his prime, because “I can’t stand out there for that long.”

>> Woods teamed with one-time nemesis Phil Mickelson for a nine-hole practice round Tuesday. The opponents were 58-year-old Fred Couples and Illinois alumnus Thomas Pieters. Woods joked about the match being lucrative for the former rivals: “It was a long golf course for Fred, but he had a young stud as his partner. But it was good, though, because it was an appearance fee.”

>> Woods had kind words for Mickelson — except for his fashion choice. Mickelson wore a button-down dress shirt Tuesday, prompting Woods to say, “The only thing missing was a tie.”

Woods said he and Mickelson have bonded on Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup teams, and “when I was trying to make a comeback and my body wasn’t feeling very good, he said, ‘How can I help?’ Our friendship has gotten stronger over the years. We’re at the tail end of our careers; we both know that. We had a great 20-year battle — hopefully we’ll have a few more — but we understand where we are in the game now versus where we were in our early 20s, battling for who is going to be No. 1.”

>> Asked if a victory this week would represent the greatest comeback in sports history, he replied: “Well, I have four rounds to play, so let’s just kind of slow down. I’ve got a lot of work to do.”

He said he believes Ben Hogan’s comeback to be the greatest in sports. Hogan’s car slammed into a Greyhound bus in 1949, leaving him with a fractured pelvis, collar bone and left ankle. A year later he won the U.S. Open.

“The pain he had to endure,” Woods said, “the things he had to do just to play, the wrapping of the leg, all the hot tubs … how hard it was for him to walk, period, and he ended up walking 36 holes (in one day) and winning a U.S. Open.”

>> One year ago, Woods appeared at the Masters Champions Dinner and felt uncomfortable sitting down, saying: “My nerve was on fire. It was going down my leg and just burning.”

He said he watched as Sergio Garcia won his first green jacket.

“I love the Masters,” he said. “I will always watch it. I’ve played it, so I know where the guys are trying to hit the golf ball, and I said, ‘Whoa, that’s going to be a tough one,’ or, ‘Man, that’s a hell of a shot; people don’t realize how good that is.’ I enjoy the ambience, the way the Masters sets up for a dramatic finish. They do it right, from pin locations to tee setups. I just absolutely love watching it.

“It’s more fun playing it, though.”

>> Woods handled the lone uncomfortable question about whether the public judged him too harshly for his infidelity by responding, “I’m really excited to play the Masters this week.”

>> He closed his session by referring to the “dark times” when he would fall and not be able to get up. “My legs didn’t work,” he said. Now he’s among the favorites to win the Masters after finishing in the top five in his last two events.

“This is a miracle, isn’t it?” he said.