Masters 2015: Rory McIlroy & Niall Horan partner up in Par 3 Contest

One Direction's Niall Horan caddied for Rory McIlroy, 18-times major winner Jack Nicklaus hit his first Augusta hole-in-one at the age of 75 and Tiger Woods was disqualified after his daughter tapped in a putt on the famous course.

No, this wasn't a bizarre dream, this was the traditional Par 3 warm-up contest ahead of the Masters.

Here are the highlights before the real action begins.

Horan said it was an "honour" to caddie for McIlroy

'My singing is not very good'

Rory McIlroy, bidding for a career Grand Slam at the age of 25, cut a relaxed figure with One Direction singer Niall Horan.

Horan said the main difference was the demographic. "There's not 60,000 screaming girls here," he observed.

McIlroy admitted: "The deal was that if I make him hit a shot out there I'm going to have to get up on stage and sing with him at some point."

Northern Ireland's world number one will be warming up his vocal chords after Horan hooked a tee shot into the water.

"I apologise to golf," Horan joked. "I do perform to a lot of people but we were performing to their parents today! There was a lot of pressure."

Tiger Woods's children Charlie & Sam enjoyed their day

Tiger and his cubs

Competing in the competition for the first time since 2004, Tiger Woods had his children - Sam, seven, and Charlie, six - on his bag.

After daughter Sam emulated her 14-time major winning father by tapping in for par on the sixth hole, Woods was disqualified.

No matter, said Woods: "We had an absolutely great time. These were memories for a lifetime."

The Golden Bear and Gentle Ben

Fist-pumping all the way, six-time Masters winner Jack Nicklaus - and oldest Augusta champion in history - hit a hole-in-one on the fourth hole.

He hit an eight iron from 123 yards, his ball landing around 15 feet past the pin and spinning back into the hole.

That took him to three under par, but he would bogey the fifth and hit two balls into the water on the ninth to end his hopes of an unlikely triumph.

"I never had a hole-in-one at Augusta," said Nicklaus. "I didn't finish up very well, but we had a lot of fun."

His playing partner, the 63-year-old Ben Crenshaw, is retiring after playing the tournament one last time, with long-time caddie Carl Jackson by his side.

"I probably should have stopped playing a couple of years ago," said Crenshaw, who has won the Masters twice.

Jackson added: "A lifetime is going to flash in front of me."

The 'curse'

Some players deliberately avoid shooting the best score possible in the Par 3 contest.

That's because nobody has ever become Par 3 and Masters champion in the same week.

That doesn't seem to bother world number 74 Kevin Streelman, who shrugged off superstition to win after a play-off.

Helping him was 11-year-old caddie Ethan Couch, who has a benign but inoperable brain tumour.

"This isn't about me today," said Streelman. "It's about helping him out and showing him a great day."