The number, 59, still resonates

ATLANTA -- Tiger Woods may be on the range hitting shots to warm up for another huge payday, but even with a few holes played, it's not too late to check in on the daily chase for 59 here at East Lake Golf Club.

It appears, at least for now, that no one is threatening that number -- at least not with Brandt Snedeker being 1-over through two, Ernie Els even through two, and both Steve Stricker and K.J. Choi even through one.

Yes, that's how early we are into the action at the Tour Championship, but don't laugh; it's never too early to ponder the possibility of a 59 being shot. After all, we had a 62 by Tim Clark Thursday, Woods's 63 Friday, then there was Saturday's onslaught when Geoff Ogilvy would have tied the course record, a 62, except for the fact that Zach Johnson shot 60. Oh, and Mark Calcavecchia went for 63.

If you think we're at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic, think again.

We're at the Dartboard Open, a stunning development considering that in six previous playings of the Tour Championship at East Lake, it's been an achievement to shoot under par.

This year? If you make par on a hole, you fall down the leaderboard.

Clark needed to finish with three birdies Thursday to shoot 59. He failed.

Friday, Woods could have shot 59 with a 31 on the back. Instead, he shot 35.

Johnson? Had he holed a bunker shot for a birdie at the par-3 18th, he'd have recorded the magic number. Only thing is, his shot rolled wide right by a mere inches.

All of which ignited a debate: If someone were to shoot 59 this week, would it really be that big a deal? Is there such a thing as a bogus 59?

"If you play your local muni at home, you shoot 59, you've played well," said Woods. "A 59 is a 59. It's an impressive number."

So much so that Johnson started thinking about it when he eagled the par-5 15th to get to 9-under in his third round.

"At 16 tee, I had to take a couple deep breaths and just get focused," said Johnson, who made par at the 16th, then birdied the par-4 17th. He was 10-under on his round. A birdie at the closing hole would do the trick.

"I could barely stand up [at the 18th tee]. I don't know why. It was only Saturday. It was really peculiar," said Johnson, who pushed his tee shot at the 223-yard closing hole, then nearly did the improbable with a bunker shot. He had come up short, but he wasn't afraid to wonder "what if?"

"It would have been awesome. It's one of those mysterious numbers we have in golf."

And yes, even on a golf course that's playing so alarmingly easy, it remains a great mystery.

Which gets me thinking, because Stricker is 2-under through four, as are Robert Allenby and Brett Wetterich. The chase is again on.