For two days, the 107th U.S. Open was an exercise in tedium. The golf was OK, but the course was better. Everyone expressed satisfaction with what was taking place, but no one was terribly excited as a series of unknowns, semi-knowns. wannabes and an occasional big-timer flirted with the lead.

When the field teed off for the third round yesterday at Oakmont, the 11 best scores belonged to players who had combined in their careers to win one major championship. None of the 11 had ever won the Open, with a tie for fifth being the best they could muster. More recently, they had combined for a grand total of two victories on PGA Tour this year.

Snoozeville.

No one was denying the Open is a great championship or that Oakmont is a great course. It was just that the convergence of the two failed to elicit great drama.

And, as we all know, one man can change that in a hurry.

Bob Donaldson, Post-Gazette Tiger Woods, on the 18th hole yesterday, reacts after missing a par putt. Woods's performance moved him into second place for today's final found at the U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club. Click photo for larger image. Multimedia: Excerpts from Tiger Woods' press conference after his third round at the U.S. Open at Oakmont Tiger on the prowl Click to view video report PG golf Writer Gerry Dulac wraps up Day Three developments at Oakmont yesterday. Plus: Bubba Watson survives a triple bogey Volunteers keep leaderboard tradition alive

An hour into his round, as throngs of 7,500 to 10,000 -- many of whom could see nothing -- followed him, Tiger Woods, as only he can, gave the Open the pizzazz it had lacked.

Woods, who opened the day five shots back, birdied two of the first four holes, sprang toward the lead and then settled back to play remarkably steady golf and allowed the field to come back to him. Which it did.

He finished with a 69, bogeying the final hole after reeling off 13 consecutive pars, to land in second place, two strokes behind Aaron Baddeley. As anyone who follows golf realizes, that puts Woods in excellent position because no one in the sport handles the pressure of Sunday at a major like he does.

Woods and Baddeley will be in the final twosome this afternoon, teeing off at 3 p.m. If Woods is two strokes back, he's the favorite -- the heavy favorite.

More significantly, he gave notice that if he hadn't solved Oakmont, he had at least caught up to it. After shooting 71 and 74 the first two days, he put together a round that was tauntingly close to being spectacular and possibly historic. An inch here, a millimeter there on four or five putts and Woods might have brought the grand old course to its knees.

But he knows better than anyone that close doesn't count in golf and did not allow himself to consider what might have been. To the contrary, he came away from the round heartened by his play and his position.

"I felt I was in control of my game today, which is nice to have on a Saturday afternoon of the Open. Today was awfully important keeping myself within range. I'm right there with a shot at it."

It's more than a shot. The Sunday of a major is where Woods is at his best. He will be seeking his third Open and 13th major championship. The field has been known to wilt with the specter of Woods close behind or ahead.

There was even an early glimpse of that yesterday. Woods left the course trailing Baddeley by three strokes. Woods hadn't finished his interviews when Baddeley came back to the field by bogeying No. 15 and No. 16. To his credit, Baddeley birdied No. 18 to rebuild his lead to two strokes.

Right behind Woods at 215 are Paul Casey, Stephen Ames, Justin Rose and Bubba Watson.

When it was pointed out to Woods that those players are lacking in major experience, he did not let the question slide quietly past him. He used it to his advantage.

"They're going to deal with emotions that they've probably never dealt with before," he said of the others. "It helps to have experience. I've been there before and I know what it takes."

Only Jim Furyk, one of three players at 216, has significant experience playing for the championship of a major. Furyk tied for second place in the Open last year and won this championship in 2003.

Woods' near misses were achingly close and had his gallery gasping so loud their noise could be heard throughout most of the course.

He barely missed an eagle on the par-5, 609-yard fourth hole, when a putt of about 30 feet rolled to the lip of the cup and stopped. He settled for a birdie.

It was much the same at No. 9, where a 25-foot birdie putt just missed. He did not allow those and other near misses to frustrate him.

"I'd be miffed at myself if I had bad putts. But I hit good ones, so that's the way it goes," he said.

Woods felt the course played a bit easier yesterday.

"The greens were holding," he said. "It was more receptive. They weren't anywhere near as hard as they were yesterday."

Maybe the course is getting easier. But maybe Tiger is just getting better. Maybe the best is yet to come.