Golf fans poured through the gates on the Abu Dhabi sabbath on Friday to get a glimpse of the world\'s top-ranked player, the former number one and the pretender to the throne and the galleries were not disappointed.
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Tiger Woods produced the sort of assured performance that helped him compile a record 623 weeks at the top of the rankings, returning a second-round 69 to move within two strokes of the lead at the Abu Dhabi Championship.
Third-ranked Rory McIlroy (72) gave a spectacularly erratic show that was good and bad in almost equal measure while an unusually unsteady Luke Donald (72), world number one and the other member of the three-ball, spent almost as much time in desert sand as he did on grass.
The trio were followed by one of the biggest galleries to assemble at a tournament in the Middle East.
Woods said he enjoyed the occasion and playing with the two
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, even though the toughness of the par-72 layout meant it was impossible for the trio to share too much banter as they plotted their way round.
\"I had a good time out there but we were all focusing on our game quite hard,\" the 36-year-old American told Sky Sports after finishing on five-under 139, two behind leader Thorbjorn Olesen of Denmark.
\"We had a few conversations here and there but all in all it was pretty quiet between us,\" added the 25th-ranked Woods.
\"This
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is playing difficult enough, it\'s not a nine-birdie golf course so you can\'t laugh and joke your way round. We had our heads down and the blinkers on.\"
If Friday was anything to go by, Woods is back to his best and once again gunning for golfing glory.
Tiger looks as if he\'s finally out of the Woods
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