Not quite worst to first, Furyk gets back in hunt with 66

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Jim Furyk marked an eight-shot turnaround with a 66 on Saturday at Bay Hill.

ORLANDO -- Two players competing at Bay Hill this week will have a good opportunity to win their second straight start on Sunday.

But it wasn't looking good for one of them when the third round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard began.

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Ernie Els, who took last week off after winning the World Golf Championships-CA Championship, was tied atop of the leaderboard. But Jim Furyk, who won the Transitions Championship on Sunday, just made the cut on the number.

The gap between them closed considerably, though, as Furyk finished off a 66 just before noon, a full two hours before the big South African even teed off. The eight-shot turnaround from Friday's 74 couldn't have been more well-timed for the 14-time TOUR champion. who now is well inside the top 10.

"Anytime you come off a win, physically I know my game's in good shape," Furyk said. "Mentally, it's getting back into things. There's a little bit of a hangover-type feeling after a win to come back and be mentally prepared. ...

"Yesterday things could have gone really bad in that round. Course was playing tough, wind was up and I wasn't hitting the ball that well. But I just hung in there and ground it out. ...

"I made the cut and was able to come out and fire a good round today -- and maybe get myself back in the golf tournament."

Furyk's round Saturday included a 31 on the front side and a sizzling seven-hole stretch that he played in 6 under. He made a 33-footer for eagle in the spurt that ended on the 10th hole, as well as birdie putts of 8, 6, 5 and 15 feet. He played the par 5s in 4 under, too.

A slight change to weaken his grip midway during the second round appears to have worked wonders. When his left hand gets too strong Furyk tends to get timid and finds it difficult to release the club for fear of hitting it left -- "and I despise hitting it left," he said firmly.

"When I came out this morning I just kind of fed off of that (change), things built and I got a lot of confidence going on the front nine," Furyk said. "It was a little bit different golf course this morning, as well. When we were out hitting balls at 7:20, there was a low-laying fog on the ground, a little bit of moisture on the ground and so the greens were very receptive.

"I thought the pins were a little bit accessible on the front nine -- and there was no wind. So it allowed us to be pretty aggressive and I played a real good front nine. On the back nine I felt like there's a few more pins tucked, the wind picked up and the greens started baking out and getting firmer. ... It was definitely a little tougher."

Furyk said his win last week on the Copperhead Course has finally had time to sink in. The victory ended a drought of more than two-and-a-half years, and like it or not, the internal pressure had been mounting.

Granted, there was that win at the Chevron World Challenge -- sandwiched in the middle of a four-month break to spend with his family. But when he didn't play as well as he expected on the West Coast, Furyk began pressing again.

"I was rusty. I didn't score well," Furyk said. "... My attitude was poor at times. I was frustrated. Was I frustrated because of my play? Or, I probably played the way I did because my attitude wasn't good."

He had time to reflect when he took two weeks off after the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship. That attitude adjustment turned out to be just as important as the alteration to Furyk's grip as he shot four rounds in the 60s on the way to victory last week in Innisbrook.

"I think I freed myself up and just went out there and played and just go see what happens," Furyk said. "... I did that at Doral and it didn't work, but turned around at Tampa and patience paid off."

And don't expect Furyk to sit back and be satisfied now that he's got that long-awaited victory, either.

"Earlier in my career I used to get to the point where I'd say I'm playing great right now," Furyk said. "And then you get in that mode where you're trying to hold on and that's a rookie-type mistake.

"There's always things you can get better at; always things you can improve on. You have to go out there every day with a goal. You may complete it, you may not. But you've got to have something that you want to get better at."