Then came the 352-yard ninth, which played downwind. Woods hit 3-wood that was headed toward the flag until it turned enough to the left that it caught another gorse bush. Montgomerie smacked his drive on the green, and he could feel the momentum swinging.

Instead of staring at the tips of his feet, the Scot stood tall and proud. He made birdie to cut another shot off the lead, then dropped his approach into 5 feet on the 10th as the grandstand burst into cheers.

“Nice putt, Monty,” Woods told him, treating the moment like a Saturday afternoon match at the club.

Woods knew this was going to be a grind, however. It showed on his face. He stared anxiously at each approach that raced past the flag as the greens got harder and faster in the wind and late afternoon sun.

He nearly lost the lead over the final three holes.

From behind the 16th green, he tried a flop shot up the slope and knew he hit it too hard when it left his club. The ball landed beyond the hole and dropped into another swale. Woods had to make a 6-footer just to save bogey.

Up ahead, Olazabal birdied the 18th to cut the lead to one shot, and Woods promptly hit 2-iron into grass up to his knees along the left side of the 17th fairway. He did well to leave his approach short of the bunker fronting the green, and ran a putt some 15 feet by the hole.

He slung the ball at his caddie, frustrated at the thought of losing another shot.

“I worked so hard all day to get back to under par,” Woods said. “If I missed that putt, I would go back to over par. I just couldn’t see that happening.”

He delivered a roundhouse fist pump when it dropped for par, and his birdie on the final hole gave him one extra shot between him and Olazabal for a final round that figures to require more work than he wanted.

Interactive Chart careers of golfing greats as Woods continues quest for most major victories

“It’s a seven-mile walk tomorrow, and he’s obviously the favorite, as he started the tournament,” Montgomerie said. “He copes with the pressure and the situation around him, being Tiger Woods, incredibly well. And if he does win this again, it’s an amazing effort.”

Woods usually steals the stage when Jack Nicklaus ends his career at a major championship, as he did Friday at St. Andrews when he missed the cut. Woods previously won the U.S. Open, Masters and PGA Championship when the Golden Bear played for the final time.

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