ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) – Two spectacular shots allowed Tiger Woods to get into the mix Saturday at Bay Hill. What followed was a series of spectacular crashes that put him in a five-way tie for the lead at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

When a zany, windy and splash-filled afternoon finally ended, Woods was in a familiar position as he tries to extend a winning streak that stretches to September. He shot a 4-under 66 and will be in the final pairing Sunday with Sean O’Hair, who won last week at Innisbrook and shot the best round of the week with a 63.

They were at 6-under 204, joined by Bart Bryant (68), Bubba Watson (68) and Vijay Singh, whose 73 made this all possible.

Singh had a two-shot lead and showed no signs of a struggle until dropping five shots in a four-hole stretch in his front nine of 40. Singh might have been even worse off except for holing out a 30-foot chip for par after hitting into the water on the 16th.

It was the largest log jam in the 30-year history at Bay Hill, and the largest on the PGA Tour since a five-way tie at the Deutsche Bank Championship in 2005.

Woods was only lurking at 4 under and didn’t figure to gain any ground over the final four holes, two of them into 20 mph gusts, the final three with water fronting the green.

But he carved a 4-iron around the trees to 2 feet on the 15th, then hit a 7-iron that held up against the wind and dropped 3 feet right of the flag. That gave him birdies on the two toughest holes of the third round, and it put him in the final pairing for the fifth straight time on the PGA Tour.

“I’ve played my way back into the tournament,” Woods said.

This was two hours before the leaders finished, and all he could hope for Sunday was a chance. Now he has an excellent opportunity, although this tournament is wide open.

Woods is 42-3 when he has at least a share of the 54-hole lead on the PGA Tour, but two of those three losses came when he shared the lead with someone else. He has never started a final round tied with more than one player.

And it’s not just the other four still in the hunt.

Sixteen players were separated by a mere three shots heading into the final round. One of them was Hunter Mahan, who bogeyed two of his final five holes and still shot 65.

He was one shot behind at 205.

By all rights, it’s anyone’s tournament.

Sort of.

“It’s pretty much Tiger’s game,” Bryant said. “When Tiger plays great, he’s tough to beat. The guy has won six or seven in a row or something, and he’s not playing great and he’s tied for the lead. So you figure he’s got to play good at some point. But not to say that somebody can’t go out and play a great round and beat him. And not to say he’s going to play perfect golf, either.

“It’s definitely there for the taking.”

Over the last two hours, Bay Hill did most of the taking.

Nine players had at least a share of the lead at some point during the third round. And in rapid-fire succession, most took a plunge.

Singh got it all started by taking double bogey on the par-5 sixth with a tee shot in the water, and another ball in the pond in front of the eighth green that led to bogey. He was the only one who truly recovered. The big Fijian birdied the next two holes, then escaped trouble on the 16th when he chipped in for par from 30 feet after hitting yet another ball in the water.

Nick Watney made two eagles, the second one at No. 12 to take a two-shot lead. He came unraveled with a tee shot out-of-bounds, another shot into the water and a putt he missed from 4 feet – all on the 16th hole, leading to a quadruple-bogey 8.

He went from the lead to 12th, and wound up in a five-way tie for seventh, only two shots behind.

“I’m closer to the lead than when I started,” Watney said.

Bryant hit a 4-iron into the water on the 16th, but escaped with bogey when he holed a 12-foot putt.

“To hit that good of a drive on that tough of a hole, and walk out of there with a double bogey, that would have been a killer,” Bryant said. “It was a huge putt for me.”

Carl Pettersson, playing in the final group with Singh, opened with nine straight pars to join the leaders. Then the Swede pulled his tee shot on the 10th and went out-of-bounds, making double bogey.

O’Hair had no such worries, playing most of his round during a lull in the windy conditions. He played superbly, particularly on the back nine when he hit 3-wood to 7 feet for eagle on No. 12, wedge into 4 feet for birdie on No. 13, then holing a chip from 65 feet for birdie on the next hole. He signed for his 63 about 20 minutes before Singh even teed off, not knowing that he would end up in the lead.

Woods finally found the right speed on the greens, and it helped that he made birdies in some unlikely spots. Blocked by the trees on the 15th, he played a cut with his 4-iron, then ran to the left to see the outcome, although the cheers told him everything.

“Got the ball over the left bunker and let the wind bring it back over, and it worked out perfect,” he said.

AP-ES-03-15-08 1902EDT