WGC NEC INVITATIONAL MEDIA DAY

July 19, 2005

Stewart Cink

STEWART CINK: That's true.

STEWART CINK: Well, you know, it's always good to be back to a place where you had good memories. I had good memories at Firestone before I won last year, to be honest with you. I just always have loved playing there. It's a golf course that really tests your game. You can't just sneak around it. Can't use smoke and mirrors to have a good finish there. You really have to be firing on all cylinders. It's like playing a major championship. To win there last year, it was great. It was one of the top fields obviously. It's up there at the highest level of respect among the players. To be able to win a tournament like that for me really meant -- it meant so much to me just from the comparative standpoint. You're always comparing yourself against the other players. It was a great proud moment for me.

STEWART CINK: Well, I remember the rounds being chopped up quite a bit by all the rain delays we had to endure last year. It's hard to go back and piece together the four rounds as a hole 1 through 18 continuously for four days. I remember starting on 10. I had a lot of confidence because of the play I had been showing the few weeks before that, including being picked for the Ryder Cup team just the Monday of the tournament, which was obviously a big boost to my confidence. It felt like a lot of small tournaments because we only had to play seven or eight holes at a time and then we had to start over again. But my form was good, my confidence was high. I was doing a lot of things really well. That 63 the first day felt so easy. I wish they all did. In fact, I wish there were more of them (laughter). Unfortunately, there are not. I remember that one because it did feel easy. It really paved the way for me to go on and have a good, solid week.

STEWART CINK: Right. Early in the season, I did play well. I felt like I continued on from last year through about Bay Hill. I had some good finishes. My game felt like it was in decent shape. Since that time, I just haven't really put together much as far as successful tournaments. I've had some equipment issues that just are minor setbacks, but everybody deals with that stuff. I haven't putted quite as well as last year. Maybe I'm trying to live up to a little bit of that. I need to really get things back on the road and get focused back on doing what I do best, and that's just grinding out decent scores. Lately I've been trying to force it a little bit, I think. It's resulted in some pretty lackluster finishes. I'd like to use some tournaments coming up here that I've had some good success in the past, leading up into the NEC there would be a great time to turn it around and have another win there.

STEWART CINK: Firestone is one of the those classic old courses that just doesn't give you anything. You can play well there. Every year someone shoots low scores. It's not by hitting it in the trees and punching out. It's not strictly a ball-striker's course, it's not strictly a putter's course. You have to have the whole array of skills there. You have to have everything firing on all cylinders. That's one thing I think players really enjoy. They like going to the courses where you have to do it all. Everyone feels like if they're playing well, the level of competition is so intense, the fields are so deep, that everybody feels like they can win if they're really firing on all cylinders. Firestone is a place where if they feel they're playing well, the cream is going to rise to the top. I don't know one player that doesn't enjoy playing a course like that.

STEWART CINK: Yeah, it's just one of those things that has to be dealt with. There's a possibility of rain, it's always a good idea to get the players playing all at the same time. I think it's good for the spectators, too, to have the play sort of condensed into a smaller amount of time during the day. As far as competitive views, I think it doesn't make any difference at all. We're used to doing all types of different things. I mean, players teed off at 4:21 at the British Open. Players also teed off at 6:30 at the British Open. We're not opposed to doing anything. I think everybody's just happy to be teeing it up at a tournament like the NEC.

STEWART CINK: Yeah, first of all, the first part of your question, I'm probably going to be playing at the Buick next week and everything else between now and then. I didn't want to be in this position at the start of the year. I thought I locked my position up on The Presidents Cup team. Now, because of some guy playing really well and me not playing that well, I put myself in position where I need to step it up a little bit here and qualify for that team. I'm planning on playing all the tournaments, including the Buick Open and the International in Denver, PGA, obviously, and NEC. As far as No. 16, yeah, they did lengthen the hole. I think it's a good hole to be lengthened because what it does is it really forces you to hit the ball on the fairway. It's a difficult fairway to hit with a big right to left slope, especially in firm conditions. Last year we weren't getting much roll. When you have a firm fairway there, it's extremely difficult to hit it in play. The rough's always deep. So if you miss the fairway, it's hard to get the ball down the fairway far enough to where you can have a reasonable shot into the green. I know in one round, I'm not sure which round it was, but I remember missing the fairway and having to chop it out with just about an 8-iron, then I had something like 2-0-5 into the flag with a 4-iron coming into that green, it gets your attention pretty fast. This year I'll take some extra care off that tee and hopefully get it in play there. It could even be a 3-wood even though they've lengthened it. A 3-wood, it's more important to be in play and have a lot longer second shot to lay up than just to go down there with a driver and take a chance on missing it in the rough.

STEWART CINK: I still am. I'm still on the same schedule. You know, the game -- golf never will be mastered. As long as golf is a game I choose to play, I'm going to have to have a little bit of coaching because it gets me very confused sometimes (laughter). I'm just like a lot of the other guys. It's impossible to master. I still work with Preston Waddington every week. You know, it's just part of my routine. On Wednesdays typically in a tournament I'll have the ProAm at around noon, talk to Preston at about 9:15 in the morning. That's part of my Wednesday routine, it's part of my practice. I consider it a big part of my play out there on the TOUR.

STEWART CINK: Well, I think the putting is the main thing. You know, in the pro game, you have to do two things well -- you have to do one of two things well. You have to either drive it really well or you have to putt really well. If you're doing one of those two, you can survive. If you're doing both of those things, you can really make hay. Unfortunately for me I haven't really done either of those things well the last two or three months. I'm trying to work it out, trying to get things a little bit back on track. But, you know, my putting was really key for me last year. I finished high on the stats, I think first. That part of my game was just -- I was so calm and I had a lot of peaks on the greens. This year, it's been more erratic. I've had moments of brilliance and I've had moments where I couldn't seem to do anything right. That consistency level that was there last year just hasn't been there this year. It's just part of the game. You can't always be on your hundred percent -- you can't always be firing on a hundred percent. I think even Tiger Woods has shown us that. I'm confident and also patient. One thing I have is patience. I'll be able to snap out of it. It's not like I'm in a deep chasm or anything. It's just like I'm not playing like I want to, not yet.

STEWART CINK: I don't think I was trying to mimic last season or have a similar-type season. I don't really put goals or expectations on my play like that. But I think what I did was I felt like -- I felt like I had a breakthrough season last year. I really felt like I was poised now to continue that kind of performance. When I started the year off like I did, I had two fifth-place finishes in the two tournaments in Hawaii and had a chance at winning the Mercedes. I felt like I was going to continue on. You know, it just didn't happen quite like I wanted it to. My play sort of trailed off just a little bit, but just enough. It doesn't take much. Finishing five or six shots back of the lead at the end the tournament, that means 30th place. Unfortunately, that's what it meant for me this summer. I wouldn't say I was trying to really copy last year or trying to repeat it. I was just trying to feed off last year's confidence level that I had. I was early on, but now I need to get back to working hard for the present and not the past.

STEWART CINK: It's always a daunting task, no matter what course you're playing. Tiger Woods, when he's on his game, he owns Firestone. The record shows that. But then again, you know, where doesn't he own? He owns St. Andrews. He owns pretty much everywhere he plays when he's on fire. One thing I relish is the opportunity to maybe go against him when he's playing his best and I'm playing my best. Everyone I think out on the TOUR would really love a shot at Tiger Woods when we're both really going strong. You know, I just think that would be a lot of fun, a lot of good memories. I'd love to come out on top, too. Playing him on a course like Firestone, as long as it is, as thick as the rough is, you know, he's got everything. Sometimes you go into a battle against Tiger Woods and you feel like you're under-manned and over-matched. I don't know, it is a daunting task, but it's no different than anyplace else.

STEWART CINK: I appreciate you guys waiting on me. Just came up yesterday as a last-minute change to the schedule. I do appreciate y'all waiting this extra time for me. It's been a pleasure.