It was the kind of smile that harkens back to the days of Jack Nicklaus and what they used to say about him: He knows he's going to beat you - and he knows that you know he's going to beat you.
Back in his element after a humiliating sex scandal, Woods headed to Saturday's third round of the Masters in the penultimate group, which means his return to the game from a five-month layoff is going better than anyone could have expected.
He came to this historic green patch of east Georgia with only one thing on his mind: a fifth green jacket. If this continues for another 36 holes, he might very well be wearing one.
Woods followed a 4-under 68 in the opening round with a rock-solid 70 in tougher conditions Friday, leaving him a mere two strokes behind Englishmen Poulter and Westwood.
Asked if he liked his position, Woods smiled so broadly that he almost looked a bit bashful about showing so much assuredness, "I do." In three of his four Masters wins, this is where he seized control. Lurking back just a bit at the midway point, he surged to the lead in the third round - wiping out a six-stroke deficit to Chris DiMarco in 2005, coming back from four shots down to Vijay Singh in '02, passing DiMarco in '01 after trailing by two strokes at the 36-hole mark.
He's two shots behind this time with a 6-under 138. Also worth noting: Neither of the guys ahead of him has a major championship on his resume.
"I felt I could put myself in contention," Woods said.
"I didn't have the luxury of playing tournaments coming in here, so I had to be more focused on my practice sessions coming into it and then take more out of them than most people would." No one likes to see Woods lurking on the leaderboard, but no one is prepared to give him the green jacket just yet, least of all Poulter.
He's always been known for his bold fashion and over-the-top bravado, which was never more evident than when he insisted a few years it would just be him and Woods at the top of the golfing world if Poulter could only play to his potential.
