Cink takes narrow advantage

Stewart Cink stood tall and strong. His shots at Harbour Town Golf Links were graceful and on target, the picture of a PGA Tour pro at the top of his game.

Don't be fooled, Cink says. The confidence you see out front can mask the worries inside.

"You guys don't have time for me to sit here and tell you everything," Cink said, laughing.

Cink, the 2000 champion, moved to 10-under-par with a 65 in the second round Friday. His two-round total of 132 was a stroke ahead of Hal Sutton (66), and two in front of Chad Campbell (67) and 1997 winner Nick Price (66) at Harbour Town Golf Links. Four-time Heritage champ Davis Love III (69) and Ernie Els (66) are in a group three shots behind.

But the 29-year-old Cink says for two dismal seasons he was held back by fears that left him scared to play a game that had come so naturally.

"I would come to golf tournaments and I would actually dread Thursdays," Cink said. "Now, it's just a night-and-day difference."

Three years ago, Cink was among the game's rising stars when he made the MCI Heritage his second - and most recent - PGA Tour victory. But as the 1997 PGA Tour Rookie of the Year moved up in stature, he built an image of golf perfection he says he could not live up to.

"I was struggling with being in front of everybody and making mistakes and just feeling like a vulnerable, weak player," Cink said.

His worries were realized in 2001 when Cink failed at the U.S. Open, missing an 18-inch putt to join a playoff eventually won by Retief Goosen.

"I can handle this," Cink said then. "This is golf. This is a game."

But Cink knew his golf game was a growing problem.

"Screwing up there in the middle of all the limelight, that was more a result of the fears I was having then," he said.

Another test came soon after, when Cink qualified for his first Ryder Cup team but waited nearly a year to play because the matches were postponed after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11.

As Cink's game faltered, his fears of what awaited increased.

"That's the ultimate stage in golf," he said. "To be honest, I was kind of scared playing it."

Cink had fallen from 10th on the money list in 2000 to 73rd last year. If he didn't gain control, Cink knew his career was at risk.

Cink says he's talked with several people, including psychoanalyst Preston Waddington, to find perspective. An awakening came last month in Tucson at the Chrysler Classic, Cink said. He shot 66 on the final day, realizing he could thrive with everyone watching.

"I've really relied on that," he said.

The improvement is evident. Cink tied for second two weeks ago at the BellSouth Classic, his third top-10 finish of the season. He's 31st on the money list and played the kind of opportunistic golf necessary at Harbour Town.

Cink made three straight birdies on Nos. 5-7 to move in front. Then, after temporarily falling behind Sutton with a bogey on the par-3 14th, he closed with birdies on the difficult 17th and 18th holes to retake the lead.

"Not hanging on the result of every shot so much, it just makes me so much more comfortable," Cink said. "I realize now that 73 or 74 is not the end of my world."

Els, ranked No. 2 in the world, had the day's most entertaining shot. His drive on No. 9 found an empty lawn chair on the right side. After a drop, he chipped to about a foot away and made birdie.

Sutton, the Ryder Cup captain who missed cuts at The Players Championship and the BellSouth, said a tip from good friend Price to keep his wrist cocked has proved productive.

Price came to Sutton this week and said he wouldn't mention the tip if it might mess up his friend.

"I thought, 'How can you mess me up?' " Sutton said.

First-round leader Craig Barlow could not maintain the swing that set a nine-hole tournament record of 28. He fell to 1-under after a 5-over 76, including a 39 on the front side where he set the mark Thursday.

DIVOTS: Donnie Hammond had the day's best round at 8-under 63. He was five shots back. ... Briny Baird began a program with Canon U.S.A. Inc. and the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, and will have a photo of a missing local child on his golf bag at each tournament. The picture on Baird's bag for the MCI Heritage is 3-year-old Brandon Lee Wade of Valdosta, Ga. Brandon and his mother, Paula Ann, have been missing since Oct. 14. ... Ernie Els had two eagles Friday after Craig Barlow accomplished the same feat here Thursday. Before Barlow, it had been 11 years since it happened. ... Jay Haas tied Lanny Wadkins' record with his 27th appearance at the MCI Heritage.

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