Tiger Woods Storms Into Third at The US Open With 8 Birdies and a 66

We join the US Open on Saturday with Dustin Johnson putting for an eagle on the par four 277 yard fourth hole. 

 He just hit a 2 iron to have that eagle try. Johnson leads the tour with 12 eagles this year.  Bam. Make that 13. Johnson is one back now at minus three.

Grame McDowell leads by four shots presently, but a bogey has his confidence shaken a little as he plays with Johnson, who is considerably longer off the tee.

McDowell makes his par, as Tiger Woods gets a roar on 13 with another birdie to get to plus two for the Championship.

Tiger needs to be right around plus one to even to be right in contention in this tournament now.

After Johnson at minus three and McDowell at minus four, a huge amount of players are around even par to plus two for the tournament.

The hottest putter on Sunday will win the US Open, as many holes give the players chances for eagles on Sunday. This course has a huge risk/reward factor for good shots as opposed to weaker efforts.

Alex Cejka just made a birdie to pull to even for the tournament.

 Phil Mickelson is on the move as well, putting for birdie. but misses and is currently even par, just four behind the leader.

Mickelson's shoes are really nice. A polished beautiful light tan color. Footjoys maybe, but very custom looking.  Nice shoes.

As I stated twice before this week, even par could very well win this tournament, and don't kid yourself. Tiger Woods is right where he would like to be at plus two, if he can hold it on 16, 17, and 18.

Any more birdies, to go along with solid pars and Sunday could get really interesting.

My Yahoo Fantasy Golf Team this week is working out pretty well, with Woods coming on, Dustin Johnson with length and total composure in second place, K.J.Choi at even par, and Shaun Mcheel fading now at plus 7 playing 14.

If Dustin Johnson could grab the lead, he would give me some good points in fantasy this week.

 Johnson was my favorite to win here with a 7th and two wins here, the last three tournaments that he's played on Pebble Beach or the other courses on the Monterey Peninsula.

The course is set up much longer and faster in some instances, but it's the same place and Dustin Johnson obviously has this track down pat.

Ernie Els has made it back to minus one for the tournament, as Dustin Johnson makes birdie and ties the lead.

Johnson is a flatliner they say, seldom ruffled and prone to make few mistakes when in the lead.

Johnson just hit it to within inches on seven, and will move to minus five for the outright lead in the championship.

Ryo Ishikawa, who I have not mentioned is sailing along nicely at even par, and Alex Cejka, a good international player is at plus one.

Mickelson is even as well as KJ Choi coming in and finishing soon.

This couse is really two courses in one as these players play the first seven holes at  38 under par, and 8-18 at 268 over par.

Pretty amazing how hard this gets on the back nine.

Oh my, there's the first fist pump that meant something in quite a while as Tiger Woods birdies again and is now at just plus one for the Championship.

Dustin Johnson approaches the cliffs of doom on eight, and promptly hits it right down the middle just before the huge gaping cliff that seperates the hole into two difficult shots.

Tiger has a 15 footer for birdie on seventeen, the final par three. Unreal as he makes his third birdie in four holes. All difficult putts holed.

Your leader board now reads as follows,  Dustin Johnson -five, Graeme McDowell - four, Ernie Els -one, Gregory Havret, the Frenchman at even par, Tiger Woods at even par as he heads to the par five 18th tied for fourth.

Tiger made a putt with eight feet of break, and the crowd shows it's gratitude with good energy for Tiger as he continues to acknowledge his fans. He finishes with three straight birdies.

Phil Mickelson seems weary as he struggles on nine with a fast downhill par putt of 30-40 feet. Mickelson drops to plus two for the tournament.

Dustin Johnson makes a par and keeps his lead intact, as they head towards number nine. McDowell also made a nice par.

Concentate, meditate, quiet the mind, as you prepare for your round on Sunday, or perhaps sleep on  Prana Mattress.

Els and Ishikawa are going to drop a shot and Woods meanwhile has a liitle squeezer from under a tree on 18.Tiger will hit a three wood and it will have to cut hard to make the green at 265 to the hole.

Well, this will be the shot of the day on the nightly re-cap show as it lands eight feet from the cup for an eagle putt. That was a gutsy super-human shot.

Ishikawa also made bogey and is at plus one also now.

Leader board reads Johnson minus five, McDowell minus four, but close for birdie on nine.

 Meanwhile Tiger putts for a 30 on the back nine and a 65, with this eagle attempt. There have only been four eagles in a US Open on this hole.

Woods makes birdie for 66 and a 31 back now. That is low round for the day, and the leaders may not break par on the back.

Tiger Woods may be in the fnal group on Sunday if McDowell or Johnson fades a little on the back nine.  McDowell, however makes his birdie to join Johnson at minus five.

Johnson misses an easy par somehow, with a lapse of reason, and is now at minus four one back of McDowell.

Ernie Els is still at even par on the course and in fourth place. He has made par on 10, the fourth most difficult hole for the tournament.

Tiger Woods will be close or even possibly in the lead on Sunday as NBC sacrifices a mailroom employee to the ratings gods.

Dustin Johnson is not going away as he puts it close on 10 to have a chance at birdie. Mickelson has also made a birdie to advance to only plus two for the Championship.

The wind is gusting  as Johnson putts into it, and loses it's speed as it misses. He remains at minus four, one shot behind. That might have let the wind out of his sails just a tad.

It's still Mickelson, Havret, Choi, and Els all at even par and tied for fourth place.

Things are heating up nicely at Pebble Beach. I predict Woods and Johnson in the final group on Sunday, and Mickelson to be right there along with Ernie Els and KJ Choi, who is flying under the radar, pressure free.

Johnson has dropped a shot and is one back of McDowell now .They are both playing 14 now, which can eat you up and spit you out if not really careful. 

Grame McDowell's third shot lands in a popular spot about 30 feet away and he is happy. He escapes 14 with a par as well as Dustin Johnson.

Johnson hit the backstop portion of the green on the side, and it spun back a bit, but not off the green. He had  about 24 feet for birdie, and was short by three feet.

Ennie Els just made it to even par and alone in fourth place, currently to be paired with Tiger Woods in the second to last group on Sunday.

Dustin Johnson and Grame McDowell are both holding serve quite nicely, and moving on to the 15th tee, and looking like the final pairing on Sunday.

McDowell has a bad lie on his second shot but puts it only slightly behind the green for a decent chance at par. Both Johnson and McDowell make par again and are handling the pressure of the Open nicely.

Phil Mickelson made a birdie at 16 to pull to plus one for the Championship.

Someone has a chance on 17 or 18 to join the second to final group and play along side Tiger Woods .

As I say that, Ernie Els makes a great sweeping birdie putt to also be at minus one  with Tiger Woods.

The leader board with three holes left on Saturday is as follows, Grame McDowell at minus five, Dustin Johnson at minus four and Tiger Woods and Ernie Els at minus one each and tied for third.

Els will lose a stroke with a bogey and drop back to even par. There are only three players below par now and who thought one of them would be Tiger Woods.

Havret is at even par, but who can think he will around by the back nine on Sunday.

McDowell has big problems on 16 as his second shot buries in the thick stuff, and his third runs back off the green. He faces an ugly par attempt. Two puuts would be good from here however.

McDowell drops to a tie for the lead with Johnson at minus four with a bogey and the two putt.

Mikelson dribbled off the cliff on 18 and will get a drop, to hit three from the fairway. Phil then hits it right on the green 20 feet away for birdie on 18. Pretty impressive iron shot from Mickelson.

I have to say that was one of the best nine holes I've ever seen Tiger Woods play with tough conditions coming from behind. Tomorrow remains a mystery.

McDowell has a five footer to keep his share of the lead, while Johnson putts for birdie.

Johnson makes an unexpected surprise birdie with a perfect putt who moves to four under for the day. and a five under US Open total.

That's a two shot swing as McDowell bogeys for the second hole in a row.

Johnson is at minus five, McDowell at minus three, and Tiger Woods at minus one with Johnson and McDowell on the right off the 18th fairway. Ernie Els stands at even par with a birdie puut on 18.

The french international player, Gregory Havret will be in the second to last group, paired with Tiger Woods.

Ryo Ishikawa, an 18 year old, is in with a plus three. That's just fantastic.

Dustin Johnson rips a six iron to 30 feet for eagle, and will more than likely finish at minus six, five shots clear of Tiger Woods.

McDowell finishes at minus three, and Dustin Johnson matches Tiger Woods' 66 for  a minus 6 and a three shot lead.

This guy, along with a local Pebble Beach caddie, Bobby Brown certainly have their mojo going on Pebble Beach.

This is close to Woods like domination at La Hoya, where he is almost unbeatable.

I'll be back with you tomorrow for the final round and perhaps one step closer to the greatest golfing career ever, or perhaps the crowning of the new king of Pebble Beach, Dustin Johnson.

Thomas [NFL Mikee] Moreland