LYTHAM ST. ANNES, England – It’s beginning to look familiar again, like it did when the mere mention of Tiger Woods made the putting stroke of anyone on the leader board of a major get just a little quicker. It sure sounded familiar when he holed out from the bunker on the final hole Friday, and cheers echoed off the giant grandstands surrounding the 18th green.

We used to expect it in every big tournament. His fellow players still do, which speaks to the aura Woods still has.

“I guess we knew that one was in before it even got there,” Graeme McDowell said.

It did little officially but to secure Woods a late tee time today and move him one shot closer to what no longer seems like such a substantial lead held by Brandt Snedeker. The fist pump seemed to indicate otherwise, as if Woods was announcing that anyone wanting this British Open would have to deal with him on the weekend.

Just like old times, indeed. But before anyone gets too excited about Woods and his chances of finally winning his 15th major championship, remember this:

He’s not the Tiger Woods of old just yet.

For evidence of that look no further than what happened just a few weeks ago on the coast of California, when Woods played so flawlessly the first two days it was all the television talking heads could do to keep from awarding him the U.S. Open trophy right then. He went out on the weekend tied for the lead, only to self-destruct.

The reality is he still hasn’t won a major since taking the U.S. Open four years ago at Torrey Pines. And while he’s won three British Opens, the last one came before he turned 30 and long before his life turned upside down.

His presence in the second-to-last group today will send TV ratings soaring, that’s for certain. What isn’t nearly as certain is whether he can manage the pressure of a weekend the way he once did against players who, for the most part, no longer fear him like they once did.

“Overall I’m very pleased at where I’m at,” Woods said. “We’re at the halfway point, and I’m right there in the mix. With the weather that’s forecast, … it’s going to be a good weekend.”

The fact he’s put himself in contention on the weekend for the second straight major with two solid rounds of 67 has to be comforting.

The way he got to within four shots of the lead is the way Woods tries to play all his majors. Hitting irons while others may pull out drivers, Woods is leading the field in fairways hit. He’s fourth in greens hit and has made only two bogeys in two days.

And then there is this favorable stat: This was the eighth time Woods has opened with rounds in the 60s at a major and he’s won all seven previous ones.

At 36, though, he needs to close the show instead of just putting on a show.

He’s the one who has made the majors his measuring stick, and his history tells us never to count him out on a weekend.

His most recent history tells us not to start engraving his name on the claret jug just yet.