Farmingdale, N.Y. ? Two birdie putts by two of his biggest rivals rocked the U.S. Open with deafening cheers that Tiger Woods couldn’t ignore.

First came Phil Mickelson with a slick 20-footer on the 17th hole.

Tiger Woods follows through on a tee shot during the third round of the U.S. Open. Woods fired an even-par 70 on Saturday on the Black Course of Bethpage State Park in Farmingdale, N.Y., for a three-day total of 205 and a four-stroke lead over Sergio Garcia.

Then it was Sergio Garcia, pouring one in on the 16th and pointing up the hill to Mickelson, as if they were tag-team partners trying to stop Woods from another runaway.

Woods got the message, and answered right back.

“I saw the guys making a run at me, and I just tried to keep hanging in there,” he said.

Woods did better than that.

With his first birdie of the day on No. 15, the toughest hole on at Bethpage Black, Woods regained control at the U.S. Open and set up a final round suddenly dripping with drama.

Woods finished with an even-par 70 for a four-stroke lead over Garcia, the sassy Spaniard who complained Friday that Woods was getting all the breaks, then left him a note Saturday morning to explain that “I didn’t mean anything bad about him.”

They will be paired together in the final group today, a rivalry that has been brewing for three years and just got even more intense.

“I’m excited about playing with him, and I’m sure he feels the same way,” Woods said.

Don’t forget Mickelson, the man without a major who lived up to his thrill-a-minute style with seven birdies that kept him in the picture.

Despite struggling with his swing on the easiest day for scoring at Bethpage Black, Woods was poised to become the first player since Jack Nicklaus in 1972 to claim the first two legs of the Grand Slam.

Woods was at 5-under 205, and his four-stroke lead is daunting. He is 23-2 when he has at least a share of the lead going into the final round, and he’s never lost a 54-hole lead in a major championship.

The last one came at the Masters, when Woods built an early lead in the final round and watched everyone else get out of the way.

That might not be the case here.

Garcia ignored heckles about his waggles and girlfriend Martina Hingis and turned in his best score at a U.S. Open, a 3-under 67 that included a near ace on No. 14.

“I was trying to put myself in position, and it was nice to see Phil doing it in front, knowing it could be done,” Garcia said. “It was quite a thrill to get back in the tournament. We’ll see if we can give him another nice run tomorrow and make it exciting.”

Mickelson, who claims to be one of the few players who can stand up to Woods, had a 67 despite three bogeys on his first five holes.

But what makes the final round so compelling is Garcia.

They first battled at the 1999 PGA Championship, when Woods barely held him off at Medinah. Then, Garcia beat him in the “Battle at Bighorn” two summers ago, and his exuberant celebration at a silly made-for-TV event clearly annoyed Woods.

Throw in a New York gallery that has become more boisterous each day, and it could be quite a finish.

“It’s going to be tough for both of us,” Woods said.

Thickening the plot are comments from Garcia on Friday, when he complained that Woods was getting all the breaks and received preferential treatment.

Garcia thought there was too much water on the greens and in the fairway for the second round to continue.

“If Tiger Woods would have been out there, it would have been called,” he said. “It’s tough to beat a guy when he gets breaks and makes putts.”

Garcia said he left a note in Woods’ locker Saturday morning to explain what he meant.

Woods said he did not have a chance to read the note.

“It was awfully nice of him to do that,” Woods said. “I’m excited about playing with him, and I’m sure he feels the same way.”

They shook hands as they passed each other in the interview room, although the final round will be no time to build a relationship.

“I don’t think he’s a guy who likes to talk too much on a Sunday in a major, anyway,” Garcia said. “That’s why we have a caddie.”

Woods has only lost a 54-hole lead twice one of those was to Mickelson in the 2000 Tour Championship. But that was only a one-shot deficit. This one is four strokes, and this is the U.S. Open, the toughest test in golf.

“I get more intimidated by the four shots than by Tiger,” Garcia said.

But it was Garcia and Mickelson who got Woods’ attention on Saturday.

Woods was on the 15th tee, 2 over for the day and, after blowing a birdie chance two holes earlier, he heard two roars that shook Bethpage.

It was also the first time he had seen them all day Mickelson just 250 yards up the hill on the 17th, Garcia on the adjacent 16th green about 30 yards away.

Their birdies closed the gap to two strokes.

“Even though the guys were making a run and I was still over par, I had to remind myself I still had the lead,” Woods said. “And if I parred in, they had to come get me, and that’s how I played.”