Putter's not there yet, but Woods says his game's getting closer

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Tiger Woods is pleased with the way he's regaining the rhythm and feel of his swing.

DORAL, Fla. -- Tiger Woods just grinned when a reporter asked if it was true that his caddy, Steve Williams, had threatened to walk off the course Saturday if he didn't start making some putts.

"He always does that," Woods said. "That's typical."

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Of course, Williams probably is rarely tempted. And he stuck with his man through another frustrating day on the greens during the third round of the World Golf Championships-CA Championship at Doral's Blue Monster.

Woods fired a 68, which was his best round of the tournament, to move to 7 under in his first stroke play event since season-ending knee surgery last June. He needed 31 putts, though, bringing his total for the week to 87, and he's nine shots off the lead.

During the first three rounds of the star-studded $8.5 million event, Woods has made 50 of 54 putts inside 10 feet. The longer putts -- the fist-pumping kind that provide those dramatic highlight reels for his career -- have been a tad dicey, though.

The 16-footer Woods rolled in for a birdie at the ninth hole on Saturday was his longest of the week. Yet, this was a day when Woods gave himself plenty of chances in hitting 15 of 18 greens.

"I hit it great today," Woods said. "I hit it the best I've hit it in a long time. Granted, I haven't played in a long time, but still.

"I have not controlled the golf ball that well in a very long time, and that was fun. I was hitting shots that I had not been able to hit before which was such a great feeling, unfortunately. I'm just not making any putts."

Woods is 0-12 from outside 25 feet for the week, and he's just 1 of 8 from 10 to 15 feet. Even in his frustration, though, Woods could still poke fun at himself.

As he stepped off the interview podium on this steamy Saturday afternoon, a sportswriter jokingly inquired, "Claw or cross-handed tomorrow?" Woods responded silently -- putting one hand against the top of his chest while the other gripped the middle of an imaginary long putter.

Woods has felt more comfortable each day, saying "the feel of playing in the game again at this level is coming back." Over the first three rounds, though, 13 birdie putts have lipped out, including seven on Saturday.

"As I said, it's not that far off, because if I make those putts or half those putts go in, I'm pretty close to the lead," Woods said. "Ball striking-wise, (I'm) very happy with how things are progressing. Unfortunately, I'm just not getting it done on the greens."

Woods said he putts a lot by memory, and the greens at Doral -- where he has won three times -- aren't responding the way they did before being redone several years ago. He also had some issues with the way Saturday's breezes affected the putts.

His stroke, though, is fine. Woods was firm in that assessment.

"I feel like I'm rolling the ball on my lines at the right speeds," he said. "I hit a couple of putts today that were too hard but other than that, my speed has been good. It's just they are either hanging on the high side or just drifting across the front edge of the hole.

"And you know, it's just that close to being some pretty good scores."

Woods also admitted he's had a little difficulty getting used to the pace of play. Not that it's been that slow, but the recovering Woods most recently had been using a cart -- and sometimes completing 18 holes back home at Isleworth in 90 minutes.

"That's a little different than playing out here," Woods said. "... Basically if you look at it, I've only played two tournaments since the Masters, so that's not a whole lot of rounds. At the U.S. Open, I had a hard time finding the rhythm of the round. I got off to poor starts every day and found the rhythm after a few holes.

"And here it's happening quicker: I'm finding the rhythm, my pace of play, my feel, my swing, my touch is coming back now. Hopefully it will keep progressing as I come closer to Augusta."