What layoff? Vintage Woods right there again

Tiger Woods fought his swing most of the third round, and never got the feel of the greens. But, just as is so often the case, he enters Sunday final round with a great chance to write another amazing chapter in his unprecedented career story.

By Melanie Hauser, PGATOUR.COM Contributor

AUGUSTA, Ga. – Four back with 18 to play.

A chance to erase so much more than that he’s-never-come-from-behind-to-win-a-major thing; an opportunity to slam the door on something much bigger than one-step-closer-to-Jack.

You may still have questions, but you really can’t be that surprised, can you?

And while we’re at it, how could you not have seen this one coming?

Tiger Woods is right where he wants to be. With a chance. He’s poised like that chip of his on the 16th hole back in 2005 that stopped on the lip, flashed the Nike swoosh, then disappeared into the hole. It fell and Augusta National shook.

One less turn and, well, who knows what might have happened that Sunday afternoon. Would there have even been a playoff?

A few months ago, he wasn’t sure he’d be ready to tee it up. The chaos was behind him, but cutting himself open in therapy was overwhelming. Looking in the mirror and being disgusted at what he saw. Coming to terms with himself and his actions.

The game? Getting that back was the easy part. Getting himself ready to play it, not to so much.

Now here he is still waiting for the calluses to thicken on his hands and playing in the penultimate pairing of the 2010 Masters. Ten minutes and four shots separate him from third-round leader Lee Westwood; three shots stand between him and Phil Mickelson.

He’s tied with K.J. Choi, who’ll play with him for the fourth consecutive round.

He fought his swing most of the third round. He chased an opening 68-70 with another 70 that felt a few shots higher. He three-putted three times. He never got the feel of the greens. He was seven back at one point and struggling.

But vintage Tiger, he’s right there now with a shot.

“After struggling just to fight back in the ballgame ... the guys were running away from me there; at one point I was seven back, so to kind of claw my way back in there where I'm only four back right now, I'm in good shape,’’ he said.

Confident that he could find the feel on the greens. Adamant that he knew what needed to be fixed on the range in his swing. Plenty of light left to get the work done.

“I didn't have the speed on the greens at all,’’ he said. “I was fighting that.’’

Don’t let the birdies at the first and third holes fool you.

“I warmed up terrible today,’’ he said. “I didn't have control of the ball when I was warming up.  I was fighting it then.

“ ... Normally you're not going to have four great days.  I've played golf long enough where I've never had four great rounds in a row," he explained.  "One day is always going to be your off day, and on your off day if you can keep it under par it's always a good sign, and I did that today.’’

He couldn’t keep pace with Westwood on the front nine, nor could he match Mickelson’s  back-nine fireworks – eagles at 13 and 14, a birdie at 15. But he still blew through the stretch from 13 to 15 with three birdies.

“It's one of those things where you've got two reachable par 5s,’’ he said. “They put the tees up, too, on 15, which was nice.  Again, the pins were probably a step, step and a half easier than they normally are, and that makes a big difference.’’

And, yes, he was disappointed with his approach at 15.

“I thought it was perfect,’’ he said. “It was downwind and then it became really downwind.  I had 229 to the hole, and I hit 5-iron over the back.  I don't hit a 5-iron that far.

“I was expecting a 5-iron to run from the front to the flag about midway through, because that's the way I hit it, and it just stayed and floated in the air.  It was just ... caught the wrong gust at the wrong time.’’

He wasn’t happy at 17 either where he got in trouble off the tee, then blocked his putt. But he finished to a roar as he stuck a 6-iron to 3 1/2 feet for birdie at the 18th.

You knew he was back Thursday and Friday. The patrons saw a more approachable, more engaging Tiger. One that substituted profanity for “Oh, Tiger, c’mon” or something very similar. One that signed flags and caps and smiled going down the fairway.

There was no question about his game. You knew that never left him. That he was building toward Sunday. That no questions, no distractions, no demand for answers would alter his focus.

That there was only one answer that was important this week. The best player in the world is back.

With a chance.

And if he throws out a good round on Sunday?

“You never know,’’ he grinned as he headed toward the range.

Then again, maybe we do.