FanHouse Bo Van Pelt

Just like the Tiger Slam of 2001, these last few weeks might best be described as the Tiger Slump. Why? Because it wasn't an actual slump like most golfers go through, it was just Tiger Woods doings things that aren't Tiger-like. A loss after a 54-hole lead in a major. A missed putt on the 18th green for birdie that would have tied the lead. A, gulp, finish out of the top-10.

All that could be erased after the first two rounds at the BMW Championship. Woods followed up a first round 68 with a 4-under 67 on Friday, tying the lead at the third leg of the FedEx Cup race and moving him closer to the $10 million bonus. On a course that Woods has won at four times, Woods needed five birdies after making bogey on his first hole of the day to tie Mark Wilson at 7-under, a shot clear of Padraig Harrington Rory Sabbatini, Bo Van Pelt and Marc Leishman.

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Each Wednesday during the golf season, FanHouse will list the top five names in golf and why they're important. Did Barack play 18 with Tiger? Did a certain player do something controversial off the course? Or was just playing golf enough to get the pot stirring? Join us for a weekly feature we call Making the Cut.

5. Rick Rhoden -- Who said 50-year-old golfers can't win the occasional golf tournament? Rhoden, 56, claimed his eighth (8th!) Lake Tahoe Celebrity Championship last weekend, beating out Dan Quinn and Tony Romo. As Ryan pointed out after the victory, Rhoden has earned more in his "celebrity" golfing than he ever did during a season as a major league baseball player.

During the U.S. Open, I'd get the occasional question from people asking if a course like Torrey Pines was as hard as it was made out to be.

At this week's Buick Open, surprisingly, nobody has buzzed me that inquiry. With a lot of the field still awaiting their second round tee time, our leader, Bo Van Pelt, is in the clubhouse at 14-under after rounds of 64-66.

Daniel Chopra, in second place at 12-under, said he wasn't surprised par ran away and hid this week.

"I knew there were going to be some low numbers out there," Chopra said. "The experienced players will try not to look at the board because they know deep down inside that there will be the 7-under, 8-under, 9-under, maybe 10-under-par out there.

"Towards the end of the week, it will be close to 18 and 20. So you don't really have to do it all in the first day."

The cut for the weekend is currently projected at three-under, which would displace Rocco Mediate, Justin Leonard and second best player in the world, Arron Oberholser.