The day the hype looked true was a good one for the man who helped create it.

Phil Knight, founder of Nike, was one of the happiest-looking people around the clubhouse at the Augusta National Golf Club after Saturday's round, and with good reason.

Nike, hoping to up its standing in the golf world, has given a reported $40 million endorsement deal to Tiger Woods, and after Saturday's round it was looking like a smart investment. Wearing a Nike fedora and jacket, Knight grinned and cackled as people talked about Tiger's spectacular round.

``One analyst, if you remember, said we overpaid for Tiger Woods,'' Knight said. ``It was Montgomery Securities, that's who it was. I wonder what they're thinking now.''

Knight said people at Nike expected Woods to be good, but they didn't expect he would be showing this kind of dominance this early. It isn't just that he leads the field, Knight said, but the way he makes dramatic shots, like his approach to No. 18 that settled within inches of the hole.

``I think the only guy who thought maybe this was going to happen was his father (Earl),'' Knight said.

Woods, because of his skill and his international appeal, is in a class with Nike's most expensive client, Michael Jordan, Knight said.

``It's nice to be along for the ride with both of them,'' Knight said.

For all those along for the ride with the golfing phenom, Saturday was a happy day.

Tiger's father, who offered his son the parting advice, ``Go out there and kick some butt,'' on Saturday morning, wasn't seen around the fairways during the third round, but his mother, the 5-foot-2 Kultida Woods, cut a recognizable figure as she walked all 18 holes.

She was wearing a tiger-striped bandanna around her hat, and walking quickly, arm-and-arm with friends, from hole to hole. With the massive galleries her son has attracted, she often needs a taller person to tell her what is happening on the course, she said.

She doesn't see much of her son during tournament week, she said, except when he's playing. She described her days in Augusta as, ``I walk 18 holes, and then I go home and crash.''

Woods doesn't see much of his mother, even when she's in the gallery. When asked if he ever made eye contact with his mother during Saturday's round, he said, ``I never saw her today at all,'' and then added with a smile, ``There's quite a few people out there. She's not that tall, so it's kind of hard to see her.''

After the round, Mrs. Woods briefly answered questions from reporters. When asked her if she was surprised by her son's performance, she asked the reporters if they were surprised.

``It doesn't surprise you guys, so why should it surprise me?'' she said before being led into the clubhouse by a man wearing a Nike hat.

Howard White, Nike's liaison to its athletes, walked the course and saw Woods' entire round. Like almost everyone in the Woods entourage, he had the omnipresent swoosh on his white beret.

In the months before the Masters, Woods had been criticized in the media for skipping PGA Tour events to collect a big appearance fee in Thailand and for his off-color remarks in GQ magazine.

In light of the bad press, his play at the Masters is especially welcome for the company, White said.

``You bet on people,'' White said. ``He's just a good bet.''

White and Knight said they didn't know of any new ad campaigns designed in case Woods won the Masters, but Knight said, ``We'll advertise him. I promise you that.''