Dustin Johnson is the leader after three rounds of the U.S. Open

CP

Nine shots out of the lead after a pair of sloppy bogeys early in his round, Woods came to life Saturday at Pebble Beach with some clutch putts and extraordinary shots that had been missing since his return to golf two months ago.

He birdied his last three holes for a 5-under 66 - his best round of the year - that put him at 1-under and smack into contention going into the final round.

The largest come-from-behind victory at the U.S. Open came in 1960 when Arnold Palmer made up seven strokes to win at Cherry Hills.

Woods and the rest of the field will be chasing Dustin Johnson, who knows a thing or two about winning at Pebble Beach.

Johnson, the two-time defending champion in the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, turned in a prime time performance of his own, overpowering the course with birdies in his final two holes leave him with a three shot lead over Graeme McDowell.

McDowell, who was the leader entering day three, surrendered top spot with back-to-back bogeys on 16 and 17.

The old Tiger showed up on the 18th hole.

Blocked behind a pair of cypress trees, some 265 yards from the flag into an ocean breeze, Woods hit a 3-wood toward the Pacific and urged it on toward the green. "C'mon! C'mon!" he screamed at it, and followed that with a "Yes!" when it stopped 15 feet away.

"It's been a while," Woods said. "I hadn't played good enough for anyone to cheer anything. So it was nice to actually put it together on the back nine and put myself right back in the championship."

Woods was even for the day through nine holes when he began his charge - quietly at first with birdies on the 11th and 13th, then with a burst that set off cheers that could be heard across the Monterey Peninsula.

First came his birdie putt on the 16th. Then he hit 5-iron to the back edge of the green on the par-3 17th and made a curling, downhill birdie putt that he was just trying to lag close. Woods finished with an aggressive play around the trees and onto the green, a shot the gallery is accustomed to seeing - just not recently.

"As I said this week, it was a process," he said. "And I was building. And it was close. Today, I hit shots the way I know I can hit shots."

Phil Mickelson, who started the day within earshot of the lead, finished the third round at 1 over for the championship following a 2-over 73.

But it was a crazy and chaotic round, capped by his finishing hole.

His tee shot on the 18th leaked to the left, perilously dancing on Pebble Beach's seawall before rolling off the edge and onto the beach. After taking a penalty, Mickelson laced his third shot from 242 yards to 30 feet, two-putted for par and capped one of the more unlikely 73s of his career.

Davis Love III and Tom Watson were among the few to take advantage early in the day before winds started to kick up. Love went out in 30, including a birdie-birdie-eagle stretch on Nos. 2, 3 and 4, and another at nine. He made a pair of bogeys and many scrambling pars coming in to get back into contention at 4 over for the tournament.

Love would be even closer if not for a triple-bogey 8 he took on the 18th hole in the second round.

"You've got to get as many as you can before you get to (number) eight and then hang on," Love said. "The secret is not hanging on, it's just playing the back nine."

Watson sneaked in on the cut line, then made the special exemption the USGA granted the 1982 Open champ at Pebble Beach appear a great idea. The 60-year-old Watson was 3 under on his round after a birdie at the 12th, but gave back a pair of shots coming in and finished with a 1-under 70.

Canadian Mike Weir carded a 12-over 83 - his worst round ever in U.S. Open history. The Masters champion had half as many double bogeys (3) as pars (6) while recording eight bogeys on the day. An eagle-2 on the easy par-4 fourth his only highlight of the day.

Thailand's Thongchai Jaidee aced the 181-yard, par-3 fifth hole, the first hole-in-one at the U.S. Open since 2006 and the seventh in an Open at Pebble Beach.

"A hole in one is not very easy," said Jaidee, playing in only his second Open. "You need some luck. Today I got lucky on that one."

It was the 10th hole-in-one of Jaidee's career.