LEMONT, Ill. (AP) _ Tiger Woods smiled and laughed as he walked off the course on Saturday.

He had fun, looked more like his old self and vaulted into contention at the Western Open. All while Vijay Singh grabbed the lead.

Phil Mickelson, meanwhile, dropped out of the picture with a poor third round at Cog Hill on Saturday.

Singh is at 11-under 202 for the tournament _ two strokes ahead of Carl Pettersson, Mathew Goggin, Stewart Cink, Trevor Immelman and Joe Ogilvie.

Singh shot an even 35 on the front nine but birdied three holes after the turn, including No. 17, to finish the round at 3-under 68. He was two strokes off the lead when the day began.

``At the beginning of the round, I couldn't get the pace of the greens,'' Singh said. ``I didn't make too many mistakes, just hung in there and took my chances when they presented themselves.''

Woods was tied with defending champion Jim Furyk and Scott Gutschewski at 8 under, three shots behind Singh, after a 66 on the par-71 course.

Calgary's Stephen Ames remained in the hunt, firing a 1-under 70 to sit in a tie for 10th at 7 under. Mike Weir of Bright's Grove, Ont., was not as fortunate, shooting a 72 that dropped him into a tie for 58th at even-par.

Mickelson shot 75 on Saturday and was 3 over for the tournament.

Daniel Chopra, the surprise leader at 10 under after two rounds, shot a 76 and was at 5 under for the tournament, six strokes off Singh's pace.

Woods continued to rebound after missing the cut at the U.S. Open and shooting 1-over 72 on Thursday. A 67 on Friday put him at 3 under heading into the third round and set the stage for his leap toward the top of the leaderboard.

Woods birdied three of the first five holes Saturday. After a bogey on 10, he eagled the par-5 11th. A bogey on 14 put him at 3 under for the day, but he birdied the next two holes.

``It was nice to actually make some putts and piece together something out there because, obviously, my last tournament I didn't do that,'' said Woods, a three-time winner at Cog Hill.

Woods took nine weeks off before the U.S. Open _ brought on by the May 3 death of his father _ and was in danger of missing the cut again after the first round of the Western. He has fielded question after question about his father's death, about how it impacted his performance.

And it got old.

``Everyone wants to say nice things, which people have done, and everyone also wants to analyze everything, too,'' Woods said. ``I think that goes with the territory of being in the position I've been in on the PGA tour.''

Woods did some analyzing, too.

He put in extra time on the range the past few days, and the work paid off. His putting improved. His irons were better.

Mickelson, however, was all over the place.

Playing his first tournament since his final-hole collapse cost him the U.S. Open, Mickelson was one stroke off the lead at 4 under after Thursday's opening round but carded a 74 on Friday. He was 1 over through the front nine on Saturday, 2 over after bogeying the par-3 12th, and 3 over after a bogey on the par-5 15th. Mickelson birdied No. 17 but finished with a double-bogey on 18.

His approach on the final hole sailed wide right and settled between a bunker and the rope. His next shot landed in the sand.

Mickelson looked and sounded the past few days like a man treating this event as four practice rounds for the British Open. He visited Royal Liverpool a few days after the U.S. Open.

``There's plenty of time to get sharp,'' Mickelson said.

For Woods there is no better time than this weekend.

``Right now, I'm trying to get a 'W,''' Woods said. ``I've always thought that was the best way to prepare for any major championship.''

Mickelson acknowledged he is focusing more on the upcoming major and the one that got away than this weekend's tournament. He is spending nights reviewing the course at River Liverpool, not Cog Hill.

``With only another week left, really, to get ready for the British, I am looking ahead and, hopefully, will get my game sharp,'' Mickelson said.

He said Royal Liverpool is similar to courses found in the U.S.

``There are not as many run-up shots as we're used to seeing because a lot of bunkers cut in front of the green and force you to try to carry (the shot) over it, whereas St. Andrews and Royal Troon, you can putt it 200 yards along the ground,'' Mickelson said. ``You can't do that here. You can get ready for the British Open here at Cog Hill by hitting a lot of shots at the front edge and letting it release back.''

Mickelson showed little, if any, frustration, while Woods clearly had fun on Saturday. He and playing partner Rich Beem walked off the course laughing like high school buddies, which is not unusual.

When they're paired, as they were Saturday, it becomes a daylong laughfest.

And Beem's final shot was good fodder.

After hitting the water, he chipped in for par from about 50 yards out. He took a bow as the crowd gave him a standing ovation.

Then, Woods finished his round and walked away with a smile.