Henrik Stenson in control at Tour Championship

Henrik Stenson broke another club Friday - this time by accident.

And it didn't matter.

Playing with only 13 clubs in the bag after his 4-wood broke on the practice range, Stenson made three birdies on the opening four holes at East Lake in Atlanta to quickly seize control and shot a 4-under 66 to build a 4-shot lead over Adam Scott in the Tour Championship.

For all his birdies, the best move he made all week was deciding to put the 4-wood in his locker instead of carrying it with him.

Stenson heard a funny sound after hitting five shots on the range, showed it to Steve Stricker and realized the face caved in. A television viewer who heard about the incident called the PGA Tour to see if the Swede had kept it in his bag, and officials checked with Stenson after his round.

If he had left it in the bag without using it, Stenson would have been assessed a 4-shot penalty - the margin of his lead. If he had used the club, he would have been disqualified. Stenson had no intention of using it, though sending it to his locker saved him.

He wasn't sure it was a violation to carry a nonconforming club, nor did he know the penalties.

"You asked me how well I knew the rules the other day. I gave myself 7 out of 10, didn't I?" he said. "I guess this was in the other 30 percent then. . . . Good thing that we put it in the locker before we teed off."

Stenson was at 10-under 130 going into the third round and might be playing a course far less firm. The forecast is for rain most of day, and the starting times have been moved up to Saturday morning with hopes of getting it in.

Tiger Woods is not in position to halt the hottest player in golf. Woods was headed toward the best round of the day, 5 under through 13 holes, when he made double bogey on the 14th, had a triple bogey on the 17th, and wound up with a 71. He was 14 shots behind.

Mark Sheftic, teaching pro at Merion Golf Club, teamed with Chip Sullivan of Troutville, Va., to post a 3-and-2 victory over Benn Burham and David Callway in the four-ball (better-ball) competition at the 26th PGA Cup in Northumberland, England.

The win by Sheftic and Sullivan sparked a 4-0 U.S. sweep of the four-ball and gave the United States a 6-2 advantage over Great Britain and Ireland after the first day. The international match-play event is made up of club professionals for both sides.