What will the South Course at Torrey Pines serve up for co-leaders Richard Bland and Russell Henley and their pursuers on Saturday?
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ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – An impressive streak may have come to an end, but Lanto Griffin’s 65 on Friday at the RSM Classic was still important. Griffin, winner of this season’s Houston Open, had made 15 consecutive cuts. It was the second-longest streak on TOUR, trailing only Tommy Fleetwood (31). RELATED: Leaderboard | A refreshed Harman contending at Sea Island | Plantation Course’s new look for The RSM Classic Griffin didn’t qualify for the final two rounds of The RSM Classic, though. He dug too deep a hole after a first-round 74 on Sea Island’s Seaside Course. He shot 65 on the Plantation Course on Friday to miss the cut by just one shot. The six birdies and an eagle he made Friday padded his lead in the RSM Birdies Fore Love competition, which ends this week. The player who makes the most birdies and eagles in the fall portion of the PGA TOUR schedule earns $300,000 for the charity of his choice. “Today was big,â€� said Griffin, who will be home this weekend while his closest pursuers play two rounds at Sea Island’s Seaside Course. He made 138 birdies and eagles this fall, 10 more than second-place Denny McCarthy. Maverick McNealy and Scottie Scheffler each have 127. Griffin admitted being tired from an eventful fall that saw him win his first PGA TOUR title at the Houston Open and finish in the top-20 five other times. He added the Bermuda Championship to his schedule because of the RSM Birdies Fore Love competition and it was his inspiration to finish the fall on a strong note. “I knew the birdies were big, so I got some work in on the range last night and straightened it out a little bit,â€� Griffin said. “The Birdies Fore Love was on my mind pretty hard and I knew … if those guys got two more rounds on me, I wanted to get my lead up. “I was disappointed, but I’m tired and I battled as hard as I could, so I’ve got nothing to hang my head about. … There’s a lot of money for second and third in this race, too, so either way I’m going to have a good chunk of change to start my foundation with and hopefully do a lot of good in southwest Virginia.â€� The runner-up in Birdies Fore Love earns $150,000, while third place earns $50,000.
Editor’s note: Stewart Cink is this year’s recipient of the Payne Stewart Award presented by the Southern Company. The annual award goes to a PGA TOUR golfer who excels in charity, character and sportsmanship – values displayed by the late Payne Stewart. Cink will be honored the week of the TOUR Championship. It was nearly 30 years ago when Stewart and Lisa Cink met when they were in high school in Florence, Alabama. They had a class together, and he sat in the desk behind her. At the time, Stewart was dating one of the girls on Lisa’s softball team. In fact, he dated several of her friends. “I would try to set him up,â€� Lisa says. “I liked him. I thought he was fun and nice and all that. And it was all great until he dated one of my best friends our senior year. “All of a sudden, I’m like, umm, I’m not sure how I feel about that.â€� But, Lisa adds, “It worked out the way it should have.â€� There were flirtations, to be sure, some dates and even the occasional kiss. But Lisa had a boyfriend and Stewart was usually attached, too. So, the friendship deepened even if romance was on the back burner. “We would study together and hang out,â€� Lisa recalls. “It was just easy because we were friends. There was no pressure.â€� Things evolved, though, when Lisa enrolled at Auburn and Stewart went to play golf at Georgia Tech. The two-hour drive between the two universities was hardly prohibitive, and by their sophomore year, the two had become serious. Lisa was attracted to Stewart’s sense of humor, calling him “sneaking funny. He comes off kind of shy and quiet, but he is hilarious.â€� She says he’s one of the smartest and most humble people she knows, too. “It doesn’t matter what stage of life he is or what stage of golf he is in, if he’s just won a major or missed the cut or lost his card or whatever, he’s the same,â€� Lisa explains. “He treats other people the same. I really like that.â€� And Lisa remembers exactly when she knew Stewart was the one. “I dated a guy at Auburn that on paper was like should have been perfect, like he was smart, really good‑looking and we got along well,â€� Lisa says. “He was fun. He liked me. I went home and told my mom, like, I found this guy who is amazing. “But I remember being on a date with him and thinking, wow, I wish Stewart was here. That is kind of my epiphany. That was my moment.â€� During their sophomore year, the couple learned they were expecting a child. They decided to get married that summer, and Stewart took Lisa to one of their favorite spots near the river to propose. He was afraid he would drop the ring into the water, though, so he lost his nerve. “We ended going back to my parents’ house and he did it there,â€� she says. “A little less romantic but I guess a lot safer.â€� Safe, maybe, but this marriage was a sure thing. Their next anniversary will be the Cinks’ 25th. Not that life has always been easy. Finishing their degrees at Georgia Tech – Lisa had transferred from Auburn — while caring for Connor was a challenge but also the “biggest blessing that could have happened to us,â€� Lisa says. Friends stepped in to help, offering hand-me-down strollers and baby clothes, but the couple had a lot to figure out on their own. “Neither of us had any experience with babies,â€� she explains. “There were many, many, many nights where we were up all night with the baby and had a test the next day. I’m in tears and stressed. “But through it all, I knew that this wasn’t something that happened to us. It was something that came about because of our choices and that made a huge difference. I felt like it was my responsibility and I needed to figure it out. “But it also helped knowing there was a light at the end of the tunnel. We were going to graduate. This would not have kept us from graduating. That was something that was nonnegotiable.â€� Several years later, the Cinks had a second son, Reagan. Connor graduated from Clemson and is now working in Charlotte, while Reagan is a junior at his parents’ alma mater. Stewart and Lisa are empty-nesters now and she’s a regular in the 2009 Open champion’s gallery. “I miss my kids terribly and I’m lost without having that mom role day to day,â€� Lisa says. “But getting to travel and actually be with him, we’ve never been able to do that full time. It’s a lot of fun. It’s an adventure kind of getting to know things out here again.â€� Getting to travel the country with her husband became even more of a blessing last year when Lisa was diagnosed with breast cancer. She says Stewart has been her safety net, her strength and her shoulder to cry on. The six-time TOUR winner has been actively involved in her battle from day one, doing research on her treatment and giving her the results “in a calm, kind of small dose kind of way to help me get my mind around what it is that I’m facing. “But he’s also made a great balance, because he hasn’t let me completely focus on my diagnosis or treatment or whatever because of his chance to play out here,â€� Lisa says. “It’s been an amazing diversion. I’m not having to sit around and think about what ifs and what ares and that sort of thing. Just him doing what he’s doing has also been great and normalizing things for me. “He is an emotional person but not a dramatic person. So, having the kind of stability has kept me very in the moment, very grateful and very focused on what’s ahead instead of what’s behind.â€� And of course, no one knows a TOUR player better than his wife. So now that you know a little more about this special courple, Lisa gives us 18 things you might not know about this year’s Payne Stewart Award winner. 1. He’s obsessed with all things BBQ and has a competition team with his swing coach Mike Lipnick and lifelong friend Chad Parker, who is the general manager at East Lake Golf Club. The team name? Que School 2. He has a tattoo. 3. He loves chick flicks and musicals. (His favorite Broadway show is Les Miserables and he has the soundtrack on his Spotify.) 4. He loves hiking, especially in Glacier National Park, Montana. 5. He geeks out for snow skiing. He makes an annual tradition of squeezing a day on the mountain in between the Sony Open in Hawaii and Career Builder Challenge in California. (The overnight flight from Honolulu-to-Salt Lake City lands at 7:10 a.m. and he’s on the chairlift by 9:30!) 6. He is pretty skilled at wake boarding and wake surfing. He has been known to clear the wake on his wakeboard 7. I surprised him with a Porsche for his 30th birthday, which he kept for the three-year lease. Since then he’s driven a pickup. 8. If this golf thing doesn’t work out, he will become a meteorologist. 9. He serves on the board of the Pregnancy Resource Center of Gwinnett. 10. He keeps the Claret Jug front and center by the kitchen instead of hidden away in the golf room or trophy case (Yes, we have a golf room complete with a putting green in our basement.) 11. He knows the lyrics to pretty much every song from The Sound of Music. 12. His favorite beer is Guinness and he swears it totally tastes better in Ireland. 13. He hates massages, pedicures and all things spa. 14. He just went through a four-year bluegrass/folk phase, which landed us at concerts such as Old Crow Medicine Show and Avett Brothers. 15. He wears a bite guard at night to keep from snoring, which has completely saved our marriage. 16. He was an avid skateboarder back in the day, hitting the half pipe on his Christian Hosoi board. 17. He is a dark chocolate addict, and is never found without 3 or 4 bars on him with varying flavors and nuts — but never below 60 percent cacao. 18. He goes on an annual “BBQ Tour” with fellow BBQ aficionado Davis Love III during the FedEx St. Jude Classic in Memphis, where they have visited up to four BBQ joints in a single night.
Spring Break in the Sunshine State concludes this week as The Honda Classic will be the fourth consecutive and final event of the Florida Swing. Jack Nicklaus and PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens will have the Champion Course dialed up and The Bear Trap ready to go. RELATED: Power Rankings | Expert Picks | The First Look Rest and the wicked rarely go together and this week will be another grinder. The backdrop of palm trees and glorious sunshine is fantastic but this will be, by my count, the fifth consecutive event on TOUR where par is a very solid score. From Riviera, to The Concession, to Bay Hill, to TPC Sawgrass and now the Champion Course, don’t be surprised if guys run out of gas this week. It’s never easy here. The last three seasons this Nicklaus/Fazio has ranked in the top three hardest tracks on TOUR. The layout here is only 7,125 yards but plays to Par-70 and the wind isn’t a factor. There’s plenty of room, as usual with Nicklaus designs, to swing it off the tee and the greens are massive targets (7,000 square feet) to land it. The challenge will come from 67 bunkers and water in play on 15 of the 18 holes. Finding the rough, only two inches of over-seeded Bermuda, will still give players a chance. Once on the greens, it’s the fourth straight week of TifEagle Bermuda running at 12 feet or better so everyone should be more than comfortable. Par is a very solid score this week and anything in red figures will be rewarded. The Bear Trap will test the nerves down the stretch but No. 18 is a Par 5 for a last chance saloon. The wind blowing provides the grind and so do the green complexes. Get on the green and find a way to get them in! Make pars and run to the next tee! A field of 144 will be chasing down a prize pool of $7 million with $1.26 million and 500 FedExCup points for the winner. Recent Event Winners Stats 2020: Sungjae Im (-6, 274) Picked up his first TOUR win in his 50th start at age 21. … Closed with 66, matching the low round of the day and the week, to win by a shot. … Sat three back after 54 holes. … Also posted 66 in Round 2. … Did not lead after any round until the final one. … Co-led after 36 holes on debut in 2019 after posting 64 in Round 2. … Won in his second attempt. … Posted the highest winning score on TOUR since the 2018 Wells Fargo Championship. … Becomes second consecutive first-time winner at fifth since the move to PGA National in 2007. … Entered the week making five of his last six cuts but his only top 10 was The American Express. … Youngest winner in history. Notables: Mackenzie Hughes (2nd) made the cut on the number (+3) then fired 66-66 to miss a playoff by a shot. … Byeong Hun An (T4) opened with 76 but played the final 54 holes 9-under for his second top 10 in three career events. … Daniel Berger (T4) picked up his second top four finish in six tries. … Brendan Steele (T4) led after 36 holes but closed 71-71. … Lee Westwood (T4), heard of him?, sat one off the 36 hole lead, but still added his fourth top 10 in seven starts. … Cameron Davis (T8) hasn’t MC in two tries. … 2014 winner Russell Henley (T8) also won here in his second attempt. … Defending champion Keith Mitchell (MC) could not join Jack Nicklaus as the only back-to-back winner. … Tom Lewis (T47) shared the first round lead with 66. … Cut was 3-over 143. … 66 was the low round of the week. … Only 5 bogey-free rounds. … Least amount of bogeys made for the week was NINE. … Course ranked third hardest on TOUR. 2019: Keith Mitchell (-9, 271) Posted a final round 67 to defeat Brooks Koepka (not entered) and Rickie Fowler by a shot. … First win on TOUR in his 40th start. … Sat one off the 54 hole lead. … Co-led after 36 holes for the first time. … One of five players to post all four rounds par or better. … Won in his second attempt at the event (MC). … Highest winning score on TOUR since the 2018 Honda Classic. … Entered the week MC-MC but opened the calendar with T16 at Sony. … First top 10 since 2018 John Deere Classic. Notables: 2017 winner Rickie Fowler (T2) closed 66-67 for his second podium in four years. … Lucas Glover (T4) opened and closed with 66. … Vijay Singh (6th) posted all four rounds at par or better including a 65 in Round 3. … 54-hole leader Wyndham Clark (T7) shot 72 from the final group on his debut. … Kyoung-Hoon Lee (T7), also on debut, posted 71 playing with Clark. … Jim Furyk (T9) hit the top 10 in his second event since 2012. … Justin Thomas (T30) couldn’t become the first player in forever to defend. … Brian Harman (not entered) and his course record of 61 wasn’t bothered as 63 was the low round of the week. … Jhonattan Vegas (T16) opened bogey-free with 66. … Cut was 2-over 142. … Just five bogey-free rounds. … Course ranked as the second hardest NON major of the season. 2018: Justin Thomas (Not Entered; -8, 272) Defeated Luke List on the first playoff hole to win for the eighth time on TOUR. … Fired 65-68 on the weekend to force playoff. … Sat one off the lead after 54 holes. … Posted career-best 65 at Champion in Round 3. … Started a streak of three straight winners here leading the field in Strokes-Gained: Tee to Green. … Won on fourth attempt. … First playoff at the event since 2015 (Harrington defeats Berger on Monday). … T9 week before at Riviera continued his streak of four consecutive top 25s on TOUR. Notables: Luke List (P2) picks up his career-best paycheck after holding the 54 and co-36 hole leads. … First round leader Alex Noren (3rd) played 12-under around his second round 75. … Byeong Hun An (T5) closed 69-65. … Jamie Lovemark (7th) shared the 36 hole lead with List. … Kelly Kraft (T8) posted 66 on Saturday to join the fight. … Defending champion and all-time money leader at Honda Rickie Fowler (MC) didn’t see the weekend. … Cut was 5-over 145. … Only six bogey-free rounds for the week. … Round 2 saw only 13 scores in the red. … First year for brand-new TifEagle Bermuda greens. … Third most difficult event on TOUR (all events) in 2018 season. Key stat leaders Top golfers in each statistic on the 2019-2020 PGA TOUR are listed only if they are scheduled to compete this week. * – Top 10 finish here since 2015 or past champion Horses for Courses
