AUGUSTA, GA. -- Tiger Woods' last hole Friday told his 2009 Masters Tournament story as well as anything. He hit into a bunker and then two-putted. That gave him an un-Tigerlike total of 61 putts for these first two Masters rounds.

Some of those putts, like his last one Friday, have lipped out, but golf gives you no points for lipping. Putts either go in or they don't, and they aren't going in right now for Tiger, which is why he goes into Saturday's s third round seven strokes behind co-leaders Chad Campbell and Kenny Perry.

And a whole other clump of good players in between.

It's going to take some historic leapfrogging to bring Tiger his fifth green coat.

Right after the visit to sand, Tiger said he ''wasn't too concerned.'' To which

11-birdie-man Anthony Kim,

a stroke ahead of Tiger, retorted, ``If I were Tiger Woods, I wouldn't be too concerned either.''

Bet your life Tiger is concerned.

Anything less than winning, especially in a major, concerns him plenty.

On Friday, it was the wind and his putting.

IT'S TOUGH OUT THERE

''Conditions were tough,'' Tiger said. ``It was just tough all around. Not only is the wind blowing, but it's also changing whether it's in or down, so you can through pretty much a three-club swing.''

Someone asked him if making up seven strokes was ``doable.''

''Yeah,'' Tiger said.

But, there again, he definitely is concerned. And, not that Tiger needs a great deal of sympathy, what has happened to him the last couple of days also concerns golf.

We all know Woods is 99.9 percent good for golf. He is the game's sun and its moon. All golf today starts and ends with him.

But then, it can't be

100 percent good for golf when he is so much better than any other player that tournament interest virtually evaporates when he drops out of the running.

That might be what Is happening at the Masters. Woods finished his second round down the aisle of the green cathedral with a 72 for a total of 142. He has never been this far back halfway through and won the Masters.

Woods snatched three of his four Masters victories after trailing at the end of

36 holes, but never from such a distance behind as he now finds himself.

The funny thing is that he has won from further back every time he came from behind after 36 holes to reclaim the green jacket.

He first did it in 2001 when he was two off the pace midway. In '02 he made up a four-stroke deficit. In '05 he was six shots down before winning a final playoff with Chris DiMarco.

So much for history, even as curiously as these numbers line up.

Tiger doesn't live by history. He makes it -- such as never losing a major in which he led or shared the lead starting the last round. You think Tiger is thinking back to a certain page of The Annals of the Greatest Golfer ever when he steps up and slides into that classic swing?

MAN OF THE MOMENT

Not a chance. More than anything else, he is a man of the moment. And every moment will be meaningful as he attempts what you would have to consider all but impossible for anyone else.

His stardom is so luminous, thousands of fans drive to Augusta National to see him tee off, then turn around and drive back down the vehicular hell known as Washington Road, back to their digs, be it their home or motel, to watch him light up their TV sets the the rest of the day.

Tiger hasn't really lit up anything this week, except for consecutive birdies from the 13th through 15th holes in Thursday's first round. He was bouncing between birdies and bogeys Friday before knocking in a birdie putt at No. 15 to move to 3-under.

But then came the trip into the sand at No. 18, and there you go.

Or there goes Tiger. These last 36 holes will be a ride to watch, if not to savor.

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