By Mark Garrod, PA Sport, Long Island

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Tiger Woods remains firmly on course to take another step towards golf's first-ever Grand Slam of all four majors in one year.

But that simple fact does not tell anything like the full story of an electrifying third round at the United States Open at Bethpage Black on New York's Long Island.

Nick Faldo ignited it with a 66 - the lowest round of the week and of his entire US Open career.

Phil Mickelson caught the mood, charging from 10 behind Woods after six holes to only two back 11 holes later.

And then, while the world No 2 finished with a bogey that might yet cost him dear, Sergio Garcia took the chance to set up his first-ever major championship head-to-head with Woods by climbing back into second place.

But Woods woke up just in time to re-establish a commanding lead, two birdies in the last four holes lifting him four clear of Garcia on the five-under-par mark of 205.

"I worked my butt off," said Woods. "I didn't play great, but I hung in there and that's what you have to do. This is the United States Open, a major championship.

"They moved a couple of tees forward and with the course softer after all the rain the guys were able to shoot lower.

"I've never played before a more vocal crowd for all 18 holes. It's going to be tough for Sergio and me tomorrow - we're going to have to be focused and take care of business."

Garcia returned a 67 despite some barracking - an expected response to comments he made after his third round about the weather, about the fans and about Woods getting preferential treatment from officials.

"I could handle it," said Garcia of the noise. "Everything was OK and I'm really glad to be playing with Tiger.

"I can't wait to get started and see if I play as well as I did today. If I do I give myself a chance. We will see what happens."

The Spaniard's comments centred over the decision to continue play on Friday when many parts of Bethpage Black were becoming flooded.

He said he thought things would have been called off if Woods was out on the course at the time, but it smacked of sour grapes and a little immaturity, following as it did a round of 74 that left him seven adrift.

His words had not escaped the attention of the fans right from the start. One shouted out: "Stop whining and play some golf", another asked him "How's the weather?"

They were also happy to draw attention to his habit of endlessly re-gripping the club before he hits.

"Hit it," yelled one and from the other side of the fairway came: "While we're young!"

The 22-year-old Spaniard, second to Woods at the 1999 US PGA, will be fired up for the final round and his latest attempt to win his first major - one that would make him the first European since Tony Jacklin in 1970 to take the US Open.

But with Woods' record of never having thrown away a last-day lead in major championship golf it is a brave man who bets against him doing it from four ahead.

Mickelson and Jeff Maggert, first man not to have a bogey on his card all week, share third place on level par.

Then come Australian Robert Allenby, Billy Mayfair and Ireland's Padraig Harrington, whose 73 had to disappoint him after moving into second place on day two.

Faldo is one further back, not quite far enough to write off a possibility of a seventh major for the 44-year-old.

But he was simply delighted to produce what he described as his best round since the closing 67 in the 1996 Masters which brought him from six behind Greg Norman to a five-shot win.

Faldo, described as a "carthorse" by former coach David Leadbetter in a recent magazine article, said: "I hope I can do it again, but if I don't it was a helluva day.

"That was as good as my heyday."

Three weeks ago he did not even know he would be playing in the event, but then came a special invitation from the United States Golf Association.

At 7,214 yards it is the longest course ever used for the championship, not exactly what Faldo, left far behind in the power game these days, would have chosen.

But what he has always had is determination and it served him wonderfully well as he hit back from a second-round 76 that had dropped him to 20th place.

Shaving 10 strokes off that left Faldo, endearing himself to the crowd with his "I Love New York" cap, wishing he could walk to the first tee and keep the momentum and the mindset going.

"It would be great to play like that again. I missed one fairway and one green," he said.

"Yesterday was out of my league because the rain made it so long, but I got back into it today. I hit it so well on the range and pushed myself to hit good shot after good shot."

Faldo began his run with a 35-foot putt for a two on the 205-yard third and thanks to another birdie at the sixth turned in 33.

He birdied the 11th, dropped one at the next - at 499 yards the longest par four in US Open history - but then birdied the long 13th, holed from nine feet at the 161-yard 14th and after bogeying the next rolled in an 18-footer two holes later.

Woods began to open the door again when he bogeyed the 451-yard fifth, but Harrington double-bogeyed it, driving into rough and then hitting his third into sand over the green.

The Dubliner also bogeyed the eighth to turn in 38, then the 12th as well, as did Woods.

Even when he was on in two at the long 13th Woods three-putted for par, but when the gap was narrowed to two he decided it was time for action - and, as only he can, it duly came.

He rolled in a 15-footer at the 15th and an eight-footer on the 17th.

Harrington repaired some damage with birdies at the 13th and 15th, but was bunkered on the next and could not get up and down.