Tiger struggles with putter on back 9

He flipped his putter, stared at it suspiciously, then dropped it at his feet, as if holding onto it for one more second might cause something bad to happen.

About the only thing Tiger Woods didn't use his putter for during Friday's play at the PGA Championship was to sink putts on the back nine. That's why he faces an uphill climb to win his third major of the year.

Woods was within two shots of the second-round lead after a string of three birdies in four holes on the front nine. But he slipped back to 3-under, four shots behind leader Fred Funk, when weather halted play just as Woods was about to drive on 17.

The finish had to disappoint Woods, who clearly had it going early in the second round. He sank a 15-footer for birdie on the par-4 No. 5, then just missed a curling 40-footer for eagle on 7, a par 5, that would have gotten him within a shot of the lead.

Then, suddenly, the putts started going a sliver to the left, a shade to the right or just not hard enough. And when he was pulled off the course, he didn't have a single birdie, and one bogey, to show for his final nine holes.

Woods will finish the second round Saturday, then play his third round -- the same round in which he shot a pro career-worst 81 that eliminated him from Grand Slam contention in the British Open last month.

Just as it was in that day, when wind, sheets of rain that fell sideways and wind tunnel-like conditions blew his game away, the weather could again be a factor. Wind gusts of 30 mph are forecast.

``Really, the only chance the other players have got is when he's not really in contention,'' said Retief Goosen, one of four players tied for the clubhouse lead at 6-under. ``I think everybody is sort of still looking where he is and keeping your eye on it, just trying to stay ahead.''

Woods had trouble hitting his driver into an ever-changing wind during a first-round 71, and he admitted he'll need to get a better feel for what the wind is doing Saturday, especially since he'll be playing 20 holes.

As the wind picked up Friday, his tee shot on the par-3 No. 13 caught only the fringe in front, and he was left with an 8-footer that he missed, three-putting for his only bogey.

On 14, he hit his second shot to about 12 feet on the 357-yard, par 4 but missed the uphill putt.

He had the same problems with his driver on the 586-yard 15th that he had on the par 5s Thursday, hitting way left in the rough -- a drive one fairway marshal called among the three worst of the day on the hole.

He recovered to hit his third shot about 20 feet above the hole and two-putted for par. He then missed a 30-footer for birdie on Hazeltine's signature hole, the waterside par-4 16th, flipping his putter as it failed to drop.

Still, Funk will be very surprised if he doesn't see Woods' name back on the leaderboard.

``He's pretty much like you heard a generation ago, the Gary Player, Nicklaus, the Palmer era of golf,'' Funk said. ``When Nicklaus showed up on the board, everybody knew he was there -- and they were watching him. Tiger is that way. When he shows up on the board, he intimidates everybody.''

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