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ATLANTA – We felt so familiar – the roars, the clenched pumps, the frantic race to follow a classification that quickly swung in the direction of Tiger Woods.
For the few players present when Woods created a mysterious and exasperating game, it was like the good old days, times that were not necessarily good for those who were not named Tiger.
"I'm a little nostalgic," said Paul Casey, turned pro in 2000, when Woods won the US Open in 15 strokes, one of his nine wins on the PGA Tour.
Casey's 66th birthday on Day 3 at the Tour Championship earned him a tie for sixth place, but while the Englishman was quick to check the calculations, he knew these numbers were nothing more than showcases.
"Sixty-four is my best on a Sunday that puts me at 11 [under]So, when he's 12, I have to shoot my best career in the final and he has to do something that does not look like the tiger, "said Casey laughing. "I think I'm just applying for the position."
Casey did not give up. In fact, since he overtook Woods earlier this year to win the Valspar Championship, he could have covered his comments and left the door slightly cracked. But he has seen and heard that too often to allow the competition to reach the reality of the cloud.
Saturday in East Lake, Tiger Woods was his best version. Throughout this last return, he offered glimpses of the old man, the guy whose name figured at the top of a locker room ranking for almost two decades. After starting the day tied with Justin Rose, Tiger was quickly separated from the pack with a birdie at the start.
He added another one in the third and by the time he made the seventh hole, his sixth birdie of the day, he extended his lead five times and sent an undeniable message that went far beyond the suffocating limits of East Lake.
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That was what many were waiting for. It was the Tiger that Casey and the others grew dreaded, a machine that never fails to hit iron and makes clutch putts look like clutch putts.
"The crowds were electric," said Rose, who was paired with Woods. "He was running the tables there. He made good moves and made converting putts.
Woods came back to earth after his dazzling start, playing his last 10 holes in 1 of 1, but that did not change the mood as the season advanced 18 holes to the finish line.
He will finish with a lap of day 65 for a three-time lead over Rose and Rory McIlroy. The closest players were a dozen shots, including Casey at 5 under par that did not need to remember Woods' 54-hole conversion rate.
There is no guarantee in the sport, but Tiger with a 54-hole lead has been about as close to a lock as one will find on this side of Las Vegas. He is 42-in-44 after the final round with the overall lead and the last time he made a 54-hole breakthrough at the 2009 PGA Championship.
Of course, he has not had a 54-hole lead since the 2013 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational. The truth is that he has not had much since '13 when his dominance was diverted by a sick back. As intimidating as Woods' game was this week, there was an indisputable sense, call it curiosity.
When asked if Woods' leadership was different than it was ten years ago, Rose's reaction was revealing. "Maybe," he allowed after a break. "It's a little more unknown now. Obviously his story, his statistics of this point are impeccable. They are incredible. But he is human and there are many things for him tomorrow, as well as for all of us.
Rose was not trying to be wrong in thinking that the impossible was possible, although many of them found themselves in similar positions, it was simply the truth. Woods has had many opportunities this season to finish the comeback and he is always short.
It was a mediocre iron shot from the 72nd game of the Valspar championship and even worse driving a week later at Bay Hill's 16th hole. It was a mistake at the end of the last nine games of the Open and a series of missed putts at the PGA Championship, although in his defense it was unlikely that Brooks Koepka would be in Bellerive .
Rose was not either disrespectful. It's a simple calculation, in fact, and Woods' work so far, though very impressive given the distance he has traveled in 12 months, both physically and competitively. , brush a clear picture. Given his multiple chances of exceeding the victory cap, he failed to do what he had done before an injury and multiple back procedures.
"I felt very comfortable when I got into the mix in Tampa, even though my start to the season was very early. And because of that, I felt comfortable when I arrived at Bay Hill (and) when I took the lead in the Open Championship, "said Woods. "Things that did not really feel abnormal, even though it's been years, literally years, since I've been in those places, but I think I've been in those moments enough muscle memory, I guess I'm I remembered it, and I felt comfortable in these places.
In many ways, the script could not be better written for Woods. It's the bottom of the ninth, two outs and the bases are loaded for the major champion 14 times. The time of the hero, his time.
He has been there so many times in his career and has managed more times than otherwise, and this new reinvented version has the ultimate chance to finish what could be the biggest comeback in the history of the sport.
The ultimate test still remains, but for 18 holes Saturday, it seemed so familiar.
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