The Loop

Wind blows co-leader Cink toward cut line

April 15, 2011

SAN ANTONIO -- Stewart Cink went from being tied for the lead after the opening round of the Valero Texas Open to barely making the cut when a 20 mph wind blew up out of the north and sent scores soaring on the AT&T Oaks Course at TPC San Antonio.

"I knew we were going to have our hands full," said Cink. "I don't know if this course is ready for a big, old north wind like that. There's not a lot of room to play out there. You get a little bit off with wind and I was in the rocks and trees probably six, seven times today. That gets pretty old. It adds up in a hurry."

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(Getty Images)

On Friday, Cink added his own big number to the 16 Kevin Na posted on the ninth in the opening round. "I tripled nine today. I thought I was on my way to a Kevin Na. The main thing, if you get just a little crooked out here, you're looking at lost balls. There's not a lot of room to drive the ball. The fairways are not overly narrow but there's only like, eight, 10 yards of rough out there and you're looking at provisionals and unplayables and all kinds of mean, nasty things."

Cink's 78 left him at one-over, just inside the cut line. When someone suggested that Greg Norman, the designer of the course, was laughing somewhere, Cink replied, "He's laughing, but I guarantee you, he doesn't want to come play here. It's tough. If you start hitting it crooked, you really make it hard on yourself."

-- Jim Moriarty