``You have to get lucky,'' Austin said. ``I think our No. 1 player found that out yesterday. Even him.''
No such luck required for Woods.
After chopping it around Wednesday, he sorted out his swing on the range, then went to his room and did more work in front of the mirror. It helped playing Oberholser, still struggling with his shoulder injury, who didn't win a hole until No. 12.
``You'd better get organized quick and get off to a quick start and never give holes away,'' Woods said. ``That's one of the things that I did today versus yesterday. I never gave Arron a hole. He had to earn holes.''
Woods and Stricker were among seven Americans still in the tournament, with the Stars & Stripes alive in each of the four brackets. One of them is Stewart Cink, who faces Colin Montgomerie on Friday.
Stricker has not been this far since winning in Australia in 2001, and while the scenery has changed, one thing hasn't.
``I'm still playing. That's the key to this event,'' Stricker said. ``The key is to be standing and going on to the next day, no matter how many holes it goes. I feel fortunate.''
