Stewart Cink Makes a Frank ‘Risk-Taking’ Confession After Entering PGA Tour’s Revered Elite List

Change is not just a constant but a necessity for Stewart Cink. The eight-time PGA Tour winner admits that’s the only way he can stay laser-focused on the game. After making his 500th cut on the Tour, the former Open Champion credits his boldness on the course for longevity. 

Mind you, Cink has also been a noticeable name on the Champions Tour—five top tens in six tournaments. The 50-year-old, who recently became a grandfather, still has the desire to tee up against the young guns. The veteran fired 4-under 67 to take a share of the lead on the cutday at the Innisbrook Resort’s Copperhead Course. He feels it’s “pretty respectable” to make 500 cuts, but that wouldn’t have happened with his ‘risk-taking’ approach. Cink was candid in the press conference.

Bold and brave—the Stewart Cink way of survival on the PGA Tour

Not that he is a risk-taker in his personal life, but in the greens, the former Open Champion never shied away from that. Consider the cross-handed putting at the Valspar Championship. Cink revealed he had been trying that for a few years now. But Matt Fitzpatrick’s success with it emboldened him. 

The 2009 Open champion said, “I’m not a risk-taker personally, but in golf, my career out here has been full of big changes. I think I learned early on that I respond pretty well to the focus required with big change.” In fact, his lone major victory came on the heels of a massive overhaul in his short game.

Before the 2009 Open Championship triumph, he missed the cut at the Masters, tied for 76th at THE PLAYERS, and again tied for 27th at the U.S. Open. The eight-time PGA Tour winner recounted that before heading to Turnberry, he felt his game needed some major change. 

Hence, a revamped “putting approach.” The long putter gave way to a short one, with a new grip. Cink added, “I started using a short putter, changed my grip, changed my whole approach, my preshot routine, and everything, and I was still so new into that that it required focus.” That was enough to dash the hopes of 59-year-old Tom Watson in the playoff.

So, Cink believes change is how he has survived for so long. “So that kind of change, or that kind of focus, and that result just kind of gave me the confidence to know that like not only like change is good, but it feels like it’s almost required for me to stay locked in.” That’s also how he arrived at another career milestone at the age of 50.

500 cuts in the Tour, Cink is mighty proud

The 50-year-old wasn’t aware of the milestone but heard it just before coming for the presser. “I’ve been playing out here a long time, and I’ve had some ups and downs, but a lot of ups. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed myself. To make 500 cuts, I think is—I think that’s pretty respectable, I guess,” the Georgia Tech alum told the presspersons. That unique achievement puts him on the same pedestal as the likes of Arnold Palmer, Davis Love III, and Tom Kite. “I know a lot of players are celebratory when they reach 500 events. So to be able to put that number on your cuts made, I’m proud of that.”

The veteran lost his Tour card last season, but thanks to the 2021 RBC Heritage victory, he got an exemption this year. Cink, starting on the back nine, made three birdies and a bogey before saving par on the infamous ‘snake pit’ at Copperhead. On the turn, the veteran fired an eagle on the 563-yard par-5 1st. One birdie, two bogeys, and five par-saves later, Stewart Cink vaulted 27 spots on the leaderboard, tying with Kevin Streelman, Chandler Phillips, Brendon Todd, and Mackenzie Hughes. The ninth title awaits Stewart Cink in Tampa Bay.

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