VICTORIAN taxpayers will be forking out more than $2 million to bring Tiger Woods to our shores, or at least the parts that go into creating the Mornington Peninsula.The arguments against taxpayer money being spent to bring the world's best golfer to Australia could also be used to argue that it is money well spent.In a time of financial crisis and with the bushfires leaving hundreds of Victorian families devastated, could this money have been better spent on efforts to help out Victorians in need?Conversely, with a flat economy this could be just the thing to enliven the sporting and tourism landscape, bringing a big picture benefit that will have a lasting effect.The Victorian Government would consider the money well spent, although there is no doubt that moves to court Woods would have occurred long before the economy began to falter.The burning question that perhaps has a more complex answer is: why wouldn't Tiger Woods want to play in this leading Australian golf tournament, regardless of whether there was an up-front financial incentive?When he touches down in November it will be just the fourth time Woods has played in Australia and the first time since 1998.Golf in Australia appears to struggle for a position on the global playing schedule.It makes for an interesting comparison with tennis, where the Australian Open is a sought-after title and of course, part of the grand slam circuit. Usually, the Open's organisers have little trouble enticing the overwhelming majority of the world's top 20 tennis players.While Woods was keen to announce that he was coming to Australia on his website, there was no mention of his $4.35 million appearance fee. What he did mention though was that the event was expected to inject $US19 million into the Victorian economy.By the end of the year economists will be assessing the spin-off benefits of paying to have him play in Australia and it seems likely that Woods will have added an Australian Masters to his long list of extraordinary golfing achievements. Perhaps a keenness to defend the title may in itself be enough of an inducement to see him return in 2010.