Star struck

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Tiger Woods and Vijay Singh are the only players with two PGA Tour victories this year, they've owned the player of the year award since 1998 (seven going to Woods) and they're the only players to be proclaimed No. 1 in the world since the long ago prime of David Duval.

Now they're tied with Arron Oberholser for the lead midway through the Wachovia Championship at Quail Hollow Club.

As if names on the scoreboard matter.

"I don't think you can look at names. Just go out there and play golf, man. That's what it is," said Oberholser, who birdied his final three holes to tie Woods and Singh at 6-under 138.

"You go out there and you chase it and you hit it again. You add them up at the end of the day. Whatever happens, happens. You can't control what they're going to do. If you could, yeah, I'd be running with shoulder pads ready to go. But you can't."

Shoulder pads might help against Woods and Singh, whose physical conditioning is almost as impressive as their golf games.

Like everyone else at Quail Hollow, though, they've had their moments good and bad through two days. What the leaders have done perhaps better than anyone else is manage their mistakes.

To appreciate the sudden damage potential at Quail Hollow, look no further than Padraig Harrington, the first-round leader who was close to sleeping on the second-round lead, too.

Despite a choppy day of ball-striking, Harrington had a one-stroke lead until he bogeyed the par-3 17th to fall into a tie at 6-under par. Then all the duct tape came off his game at the 18th hole, where he hit his approach shot into the creek then three-putted from 15 feet to spoil more than his dinner.

"It would've been a blessing if I had finished at 6- or 7-under par," said Harrington, who finished three behind the leaders. "I struggled all day. (The final two) holes were the best I swung at it all day."

Each of the leaders had his issues. Woods was fortunate to get away with a couple of off-line drives and he missed two short birdie putts in his final five holes. Singh had a rough patch early trying to get comfortable on the greens and Oberholser double-bogeyed the 12th hole (his third hole).

The Woods-Singh pairing today will offer another chapter in a compelling rivalry.

Singh supplanted Woods atop the world rankings when he beat him head-to-head at the Deutsche Bank Championship in 2004. Last year, back at No. 1, Woods started the final round of the Deutsche Bank event three behind Singh but blew by him with a closing 63 to win.

Woods has been in a similar position at Quail Hollow. In his first Wachovia appearance in 2003, he led after two rounds but shot 75 in the third round and eventually finished tied for third, ending a streak of winning 18 consecutive events after leading at the midpoint.

Shortly thereafter, Woods failed to hold another 36-hole lead, but since then he has won seven straight tournaments when he had at least a share of the halfway lead.

Despite his position, Woods didn't feel entirely secure about his game.

He has hit just 12 of 28 fairways, but he needed only 25 putts Friday to forgive any mistakes. Woods could have gone lower but missed from inside 3 feet for birdie at the fifth and from 6 feet at the eighth.

"I felt like I pretty much have maximized my rounds," Woods said. "Today was part of a pretty good balance. I missed a couple of short ones but I also got away with a couple of bad drives and made a pretty good up-and-down after a terrible iron shot at No. 3.

"All in all, pretty balanced on both ends."

Singh made only one par in his first nine holes in the cool, occasionally wet morning, struggling to get comfortable.

He then provided a roll of thunder when he eagled the par-5 seventh, ripping a 229-yard 3-iron approach shot to within 3 feet of the hole.

"The only thing it didn't do was go in," Singh said of his second shot.

Oberholser was just another player on the edge of contention until he strung together three closing birdies, capping his day by holing a 15-foot putt on the tough ninth.

A runner-up to Joey Sindelar in 2004, Oberholser sounded almost surprised to have a share of the lead.

"I never feel totally comfortable on this golf course, I really don't," he said. "It's a lot like Augusta (National) where you have to think from the pin backward.

"I'm going to have to putt better. I'm sure a lot of guys near the lead can say this, but I left a few out there."

Provider:
Knight-Ridder / Tribune Business News / Charlotte Observer, The (NC)