Tiger Woods finally looked like himself again

Tiger Woods finally looked like himself again

Rory McIlroy goes to the weekend at the Masters with a two-stroke lead, a worthy reward for two superb days of golf by the 21-year-old from Northern Ireland. But all eyes will be on the guy who's three shots back, in a position that used to be more familiar. Woods shot a 6-under 66 today, his best round at the Masters since he captured the last of Masters Masters Competition About The Tradition May Need To Beware Flying Ball his Wilson And His Golf Performance four green jackets in 2005. "I've played myself back in the championship,'' he said.  Woods hasn't shot this low at the Masters since his 65 in the third round of the '05 tournament when he went on to beat Chris DiMarco in a playoff. A lot has changed since then. Woods is mired in the longest winless streak of his career - 20 tournaments over 17 months - and he's still dogged by a sex scandal that ended his marriage and tarnished his image. After a sluggish start to the second round, Woods got going with three straight birdies around the turn, a perilous par save at the 11th, then strung together three more birdies through the middle of the back nine.

Woods just missed making it four in a row, pushing a slick putt at No 16 wide of the hole. But he ended with a flourish, knocking his approach from under the trees to within 10 feet of the pin. He rolled that one in and pumped his fist one last time.  "Anytime you shoot 66 in a major, it's going to be good,'' Woods said. "I'm very pleased about that. Very pleased.'' Rory McIlroy fretted about an errant chip that nearly slid into the water, a few putts that didn't fall in the cup on the back nine. That's about it. Phil Mickelson scrambled for a 70 in the first round despite hitting fewer fairways than anyone in the 99-player field. His erratic play continued Friday, forcing him to spend more time saving pars than chasing birdies, as he shot a 72.