BAY HILL INVITATIONAL PRESENTED BY COOPER TIRES

March 22, 2003

Stewart Cink

Q. Could you make a couple comments about your round, how you played today?

STEWART CINK: Well, I played pretty solidly. I didn't make too many mistakes. I never really got anything going after about the fourth hole. I made a lot of birdies  -- I made three out of the first four and then just cooled off. I played well, but you have to do more than just play well. You have to play pretty spectacular to beat Tiger the way he's playing.

Q. How did you strike the ball?

STEWART CINK: I struck it really well again today. I really only made one or two bad swings; and one cost me, made a bogey, but you're going to make some bogeys. This course isn't that easy.

Q. You've played with Tiger enough now that it's not that much of a novelty, but does he make you play better usually?

STEWART CINK: No, not necessarily. I think Larry Mize is the only guy that makes me play better. There's something about Larry; I play great when I'm playing with him. Everybody else, I just play  -- some days I play great and some days I don't. Today I played well. I'm not disappointed with the way I played. I would have loved to have got a few putts to fall there on the back nine, but maybe they will fall tomorrow.

Q. The greens with the rain, how are they softer? How do they feel?

STEWART CINK: They were softer until about the last -- well, the second half. The back nine today they really started to get firm again and I think tomorrow we'll be back to what we came to.

Q. Was it hard to adjust from the front to back nine?

STEWART CINK: Yes, it was. It was tricky, tricky to get your ball pin-high, but the hard part about it was just figuring out the bounce. You were expecting it to bounce but you didn't know if it was going to go 5 yards or 15 yards. You had to play for what you think it might do and it's not always right.

Q. And the putting, was it faster today, slower today, how did it feel compared to the first two rounds?

STEWART CINK: They were a little slower still because of the rain but they are gaining their pace back. I think tomorrow they will be right back to how they were.

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