After furious finish on Saturday, Woods controls own destiny at Torrey
Greenside rough, 30 feet from the hole. One big hop. Straight into the cup.
Even Tiger Woods had to shake his head about that birdie he made at the 17th hole.
Ten minutes later, a 40-foot big breaker drops for an eagle -- and the lead -- at No. 18.
Sweet.
They swear he doesn't get into their heads. But c'mon.
How can he not? Especially here. Especially when he throws out two eagles and a chip-in birdie in the last five holes. Especially when he turns a five-shot deficit into a one-shot lead over Lee Westwood.
What happens in Sunday's final round of this 108th U.S. Open is up to Tiger.
If you didn't consider the possibility before, you have to now.
And not because he's never lost a major when he's had the lead going into the final round. And not because there are 13 players -- including major winners Geoff Ogilvy, Ernie Els and Mike Weir -- within six shots. And not because he does things that boggle our minds.
"The stuff he does, it's unreal,'' said Rocco Mediate, who is two strokes behind Woods.
Uh, yeah. That's just what Tiger does.
"But just once, can't someone else do it? Come on," Mediate said, laughing.
Doubtful.
Tiger has been stuck on 13 majors since last August, and it's getting old. If he does indeed go on to win this major -- which would give him a third U.S. Open and third career Grand Slam that would tie him with Jack Nicklaus -- this story might transcend those that have gone before.
So just how badly does he want this battle of wounded knee? Enough that it doesn't matter how many god-awful pains shoot up his leg, how pronounced the limp or how many times he has to freeze until the pain subsides.
"If the pain hits, it hits,'' he said. "So be it."
We're talking focus here. The white tent at No. 13? He had no clue it was a concession tent when he had to decide where to take that free drop. He was just focused on the line. The subsequent 60-foot eagle putt? He was figuring he could get it inside 3 feet. He didn't expect it to drop.
And when it did? He cut loose with a couple of hopping sidesteps and six fist pumps. Followed by another one. And a slam dunk.
He knew it was game on.
"I was just trying to manage my game, stay in there,'' he said. "It's a U.S. Open. Guys aren't going to go low. And even though I got off to such a poor start again today, I just hung around. I was just trying to get back to even par, either for the tournament or for the day. The day would be great. But even if I finished at even par for the tournament, it wouldn't be a bad thing either."
He paused.
"And then all of a sudden things started turning.''
Nothing had felt right on the range Saturday morning. Nothing was crisp or clean.
"I had a two-way miss going,'' he said, ''so I was trying to clean it up where at least I had just a one-way miss.''
One he had to ride all day, beginning with a wretched tee shot at the first and another double bogey.
It didn't get any easier. And it might not Sunday, either.
What sets Tiger apart here goes deeper than the unreal shots and the talent. It's deeper even than understanding Torrey Pines, a course he just flat owns. It's that intangible that's buried deep in his heart and soul.
We no longer ask what it would mean to win the major in front of him. We know.
It's another career Grand Slam, another step closer to Jack's magic numbers. Another chance to widen the gap between the best player in the game and the rest of the world.
This chance comes on a very different Torrey Pines than the one where he's won six Buick Invitationals. And on a very different Open course, period.
The USGA hasn't tortured the players on the longest course in Open history. The blue jackets have been somewhat generous -- with forward tees, fair pins and graduated rough -- perhaps because they can't control the poa greens, which are humpy, bumpy pinball machines. Instead, they're working on the player's minds.
"Usually ... every other U.S. Open, except for Pinehurst, it's been driver and if you happen to miss it, so be it," Woods said. "Just (hit) a wedge down there and try and get up and down. Or lay up to a number that you feel good about.
"Here you're definitely thinking. Do I have this lie? Will it jump? Will it not jump? Where do I place it? It adds a lot to it.''
And it seems to be playing very much into his hands.
Not that things can't happen, mind you. The one-way miss could turn into a day of double-crosses. The improbable could simply become impossible. The magic could turn into dust.
Or someone else could sneak up from behind and go low.
We know -- and so does he -- that the players chasing him aren't there by accident. Westwood is a major in waiting. Ogilvy has won an Open. A bit farther back is Els, who's won two and a British Open. Mediate has come close three times.
And half the rest of the crowd is playing the best golf of their lives.
But as the sun was setting Saturday night, there was one person on everyone's mind.
Forget that he's playing on a not-yet-healed knee and in his first tournament since the Masters. Forget, too, that he finished second there. Remember he did it on a knee with moving cartilage that hurt worse before the surgery.
Remember the shots. The magic. The unbelievable excitement and electricity that shot across Torrey Pines on Saturday afternoon.
And remember Tiger's face. That one-hop-and-in at No. 17 should have run 8 feet past. The 60-foot bomb at the 13th should have stopped short, but it rolled in. And No. 18? You knew that 40-footer was going in when it rounded the break.
Impossible? Improbable? No.
Just what we've come to expect.
"He's the best that ever walked on grass that played golf, whether he beats Jack's record or not, forget it," Mediate said. "It's just the most amazing display of athletic, mental power that there is; there ever was.
"Look at him, he hasn't played in ten weeks. There's no surprise to me, but he hasn't played for ten weeks. And he comes here. So I'm not surprised. I'm looking forward to tomorrow. I can't wait to see what happens tomorrow.''
Neither can Tiger.
Until further notice, Torrey's still his.
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