Woods Is Leading the Chorus in the Medinah Medley

Here’s something you haven’t heard in, what, a couple of weeks? Tiger Woods is in position to win a major.

This time, it’s the PGA Championship at the decidedly woodsy Medinah Country Club, which may or may not turn out to be a home-course advantage for Woods. All Woods did Saturday was blow through Medinah with a four-under-par 68 and move into a share of the third-round lead, where he is joined by relatively obscure Canadian left-hander Mike Weir.

It’s possible that Weir, who chipped in for eagle at No. 14, may have used up his good-luck quotient for well into next year. And now, the No. 103-ranked golfer in the world will play the final round of a major today while trying not to get blinded by the incandescent Woods.

Is this a fair golf fight, or what?

Of course, the tale of Tiger and Lefty cannot be told without its full complement of characters, a list that includes the unlikely duo of Stewart Cink, who is from Smyrna, Ga., and Sergio Garcia, who is from Castellon, Spain.

What Garcia wants most is to avoid getting caught in Woods’ back draft.

“If he keeps playing like he played today, maybe we have to look for the second place,” Garcia said.

Woods and Weir lead Garcia and Cink by two shots, but if there’s something we have learned so far in this 81st PGA Championship--besides anything to do with the Ryder Cup and money--it’s that you can’t take anything for granted.

For this reason, there still is hope for four others who are five shots behind the leaders. The group features Nick Price, who has won two majors; Jay Haas, who probably would like to blame his caddie for his 75 on Saturday but his caddie is his son; Jim Furyk, who has never won a major; and Skip Kendall, who has never won a tournament.

No one else is closer than seven shots. You can’t technically count Colin Montgomerie, Lee Westwood, Brian Watts, Brandt Jobe or Greg Turner out of it. However, realistically, you probably can.

Woods did a little accounting of his own and basically came to the same conclusion.

“I know I’m tied with Mike and there’s two players at nine under,” Woods said. “And if those guys get off to a quick start, they’re right in it . . . but it’s basically the four guys who have got a very good shot at winning this championship. And the guys at six [under par], if they play a great round of golf, they’ve got a shot, too.”

Perhaps, but at this point, it appears to be Woods’ tournament to win. His track record indicates he’s a big-time closer. Woods had held the third-round lead in eight tournaments, and he has won the last seven. “I just enjoy being in a position where everybody’s trying to beat me,” Woods said.

Then he’s happy, once again. Consider that with a little luck, Woods could have won three more majors. He finished third at last year’s British Open--one shot out of a playoff--and this year tied for third at the U.S. Open and tied for seventh at the British Open.

If that’s too much weight for Weir to bear, there are more than a few other guys who wouldn’t mind trying, including Garcia. The 19-year-old superstar-on-training wheels didn’t turn pro until after the Masters, but here he is, only a couple of shots out of the lead. He may be susceptible to the pressure, as Price suggested.

“I haven’t been in that position, but I just don’t know,” Garcia said. “I’ll feel it tomorrow . . . I hope not. I know it’s a major, but I’m taking it as another tournament. And, well, if I win it, it will be better than another tournament.”

Few players can match Woods in the power category. He birdied three of the four par-five holes Saturday and he’s seven under on the par fives through three rounds. But he was also even on the four par-three holes.

Weir birdied two par-three holes Saturday, but what made his round was his chip-in from 25 yards on the par-five 14th for his eagle. If that wasn’t enough, he drilled a 20-foot putt to birdie the 17th and made a great eight-footer to save par at No. 18.

All this qualifying-school graduate has to think about now is how to beat one of the top players in the world who just happens to be at the top of his game.

“I don’t mind being the underdog, I guess, obviously I am, because Tiger was the best player in the world and I didn’t have my tour card,” Weir said. “I lost my tour card and I had to go back to qualifying school.

“I don’t have anything to lose. It will be a great experience for me.”

It won’t be too bad for Cink, either. He bogeyed the first hole, but made three consecutive birdie putts of five feet or less on the front and kept in touch and never lost contact with the leaders.

Cink, 26, has one PGA Tour victory in five years, but he tied for seventh at Carnoustie--with Woods--and isn’t worried about who begins the day in front of him.

“You dig deep coming down the stretch and try to finish as high as you can,” Cink said. “And if that means first, that’s great.”

And if it doesn’t, well, that’s just going to have to do. It’s the house rules, at Medinah and everywhere else.

54-HOLE LEADERS

Mike Weir 68-68-69--205 -11

Tiger Woods 70-67-68--205 -11

Stewart Cink 69-70-68--207 -9

Sergio Garcia 66-73-68--207 -9

Nick Price 70-71-69--210 -6

Jim Furyk 71-70-69--210 -6

Skip Kendall 74-65-71--210 -6

Jay Haas 68-67-75--210 -6

COVERAGE: Pages 12-13

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Dangerous Tiger

Tiger Woods’ record in tournaments when leading after three rounds (Note: Woods was tied with Loren Roberts and Justin Leonard after 54 holes of the 1997 Western Open): *--*

Year Tournament Result 1996 Quad City Tied for 5th 1997 Masters Won 1997 GTE Byron Nelson Won 1997 Western Won Year Tournament Result 1998 BellSouth Won 1999 Buick Invitational Won 1999 Memorial Won 1999 Western Won

*--*