Woods running away with it at Cog Hill

Poor Brandt Snedeker.

On Thursday and Friday, it was Steve Stricker along for the ride.

Elmhurst's Mark Wilson fell victim Saturday.

And Sunday, when Tiger Woods steps up to the first tee for his coronation at the BMW Championship after shooting a course-record 62 on Saturday, good for a 7-stroke lead, the "other guy" in his group will be Snedeker, who played himself into "contention" with a third-round 66.

Don't think the 28-year-old out of Vanderbilt doesn't know what he will be up against come 12:55 p.m. on the first tee.

"He's going to play great golf," Snedeker said. "I've got to do something spectacular, and he's got to maybe have a heart attack out there for me to have a chance."

Probably not going to happen.

Not with a guy like Woods, who regardless if it's the old Dubsdread or the new, whether it's the BMW Championship or the Western Open, is a horse for the Cog Hill course, as his 4 victories there have proven.

And if that's not enough evidence, this marks the 52nd time in Woods' career that he has held at least a share of the 54-hole lead, and he has won 47 of 51 of those events. Three of those leads have come at the BMW, and they've all been substantial.

What's the deal?

"I've always felt comfortable playing this golf course," Woods said. "I've always liked it.

"Even though the golf course has changed this year for us, the routing is still the same. I've always felt comfortable for some reason. For instance, they changed Torrey Pines South and I still feel comfortable on the property. This is very similar to that."

Despite the odds being stacked against him, Snedeker, who has never been paired with Woods, actually is looking forward to playing 18 with King of Cog.

"It'll be fun; are you kidding me?" he said. "Playing with the best guy in the world? It'll be fantastic.

"That's what you want. You want to play with the best when they're playing their best and see what you've got, what you've got to work on."

Other than mastering the bugaboo he has with the first hole, Woods doesn't have much to work on as his 8-birdie, 1-eagle performance proved.

"I birdied No. 3 and the next thing I know, Paddy (Padraig Harrington) birdied three of the first four, got off to a quick start," Woods said. "After seeing that, I just figured that you had to get into double digits today."

In case you were wondering - he meant for the tournament, not the day.

Harrington finished up with a 69 Saturday, 8 shots off the pace along with Matt Kuchar. Ahead of them by a stroke are Snedeker and Australian rookie Mark Leishman.

Second round co-leader Wilson shot an even par 71 and is tied with John Senden at 7 under.

By the time Sunday night rolls around, Woods appears to be a shoo-in for FedEx Cup points leader heading into the Tour Championship, because it's Cog Hill "and this golf course - it fits."

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