Shaun Micheel came to his own rescue late last night, making two birdies on the last two holes to grab a two-stroke lead after two rounds of the U.S. PGA Championship at Oak Hill.
A relatively anonymous figure on the PGA Tour still searching for his first win, Micheel received an award for bravery after saving two people from drowning in a sinking car during a golf tournament in North Carolina in 1994.
Micheel, 34, honed his skills in South Africa and Asia while making repeated visits to qualifying school to retain his PGA Tour card.
But after all the missed cuts, the travelling and more than 170 tournaments in the U.S. he feels maybe his time has finally arrived.
"Sure, why not?", Micheel told reporters when asked if he thought he could win here. "Someone is going to have to win. I've played in enough golf tournaments now as a professional I feel like maybe I'm ready to do something.
Yesterday's strong finish put the American on 137, three under par and two shots ahead of U.S. Masters champion Mike Weir of Canada and Billy Andrade.
Phil Mickelson, who shared the first round lead, dropped back with a 75 but the American left-hander is still only four shots off the pace as he bids for his first major title.
Tiger Woods is some nine shots back after his 72 for a 146 midway total leaves the world number one with much work to do.
As for the Irish, only Padraig Harrington made it into the weekend. The Dubliner scraped in on the cut mark of eight over 148 following his second round 76.
As for Darren Clarke and Paul McGinley, they missed out by one shot. Clarke carded a fine 70 but it wasn't enough to undo his opening 79 while McGinley shot 76.