DUBLIN, OHIO ? Ben Curtis hasn’t taken the claret jug on a world tour since winning the British Open, but he decided to bring it with him to the Memorial Tournament for a little motivation. So far, it appears to be working.

Curtis feels so confident about his game that he took aim at the flag on the 18th hole and walked off with a birdie, giving him a 3-under 69 Friday and a share of the lead with Justin Rose and Stephen Ames.

“Looking at that thing gives you goosebumps,” Curtis said of the claret jug, which he won last year at Royal St. George’s as the 396th player in the world ranking.

Seeing his name atop the leaderboard isn’t bad, either.

Despite greens that were even faster and swirling winds that grew stronger, Curtis navigated Muirfield Village without a bogey for the second straight day to wind up at 7-under 137.

“Having no bogeys … the last two days is a reflection of how I’ve been playing,” he said.

Tiger Woods gave himself a chance for a fourth title at the Memorial. Despite a double bogey on the par-3 12th that killed his momentum, Woods shot 68 and was three shots off the lead.

Jack Nicklaus showed some life, too. The 64-year-old tournament host was robbed of an ace on No. 12, but still managed a 1-over 73 and made the cut.

Curtis, Rose and Ames had a one-shot lead over Ernie Els (70), K.J. Choi (67) and Fred Couples, whose round of 69 could have been better considering his seven birdies and an eagle.

The craziest shot of the day belonged to Nicklaus. His tee shot over the water on No. 12 was perfect all the way — too perfect, in fact. It flew straight into the cup with such force that it ricocheted off the metal bottom, shot 20 feet into the air and settled on the fringe. He two-putted for par.