PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem was lost in a sea of fans on the sixth hole, hearing cheers from every corner of East Lake without knowing for sure what they meant.

Once he was filled in on the details, two quick birdies for Tiger Woods to stretch his lead to five shots at the Tour Championship, he looked at a scoreboard in the distance and said, ''We need this thing to tighten up.'' The FedEx Cup? Not a chance.

Woods took care of the US$10-million retirement deposit with a 6-under 64 on Saturday to retain a three-shot lead. The odds are stacked so great in his favor that even if Phil Mickelson were to birdie every hole in the final round; it still probably wouldn't be enough. What matters to Woods now is the crystal trophy for winning the Tour Championship.

And even that 64 to give him the lowest 54-hole start of his PGA Tour wasn't enough to guarantee that. Not on a pushover like East Lake, where the greens are slow and soft and pins looking like something the players see in a pro-am. The perfect storms of scoring conditions were never more evident in a sunny afternoon at East Lake.

Zach Johnson came within a birdie on the 18th hole of a 59, instead hitting into a bunker and settling for a 60 that broke the East Lake record by two shots. Mark Calcavecchia shot a 63 and only gained one shot on the lead. Sergio Garcia shot a 64 and didn't make up any ground at all. Woods has never played in the Bob Hope Classic. After a week like this, he doesn't have to.