Stewart Cink has played on five United States Ryder Cup teams, including a winning squad in 2008, so he knows what it takes to get through three days of intense golf and emerge victorious.
For him, it really comes down to handling the crowd.
“You have to stay in the moment with the little things, remaining totally focused on what you’re doing on each shot,” he told For The Win while promoting his partnership with the GM BuyPower Card. “It’s whoever lets the environment affect them the least. It’s pretty raucous and it can be intimidating. It’s impossible to know what to expect at the first tee. You can feel every hair on your arm standing up. To focus and execute a golf shot in that environment isn’t the easiest thing to do.”
So how do you handle it? Cink cited Patrick Reed, now famous for how he’s riled up Ryder Cup crowds both overseas and at home.
“He’s a lot like Tiger (Woods), he feeds off crowd response,” he said. “He orchestrates crowd response to get him fired up. That’s something he uses to focus himself. That’s different than other players. It’s not wrong or right. I was never a guy who fed off the crowd. I always engaged the crowd because I wanted the rest of the team on the course to hear that support. Everyone uses the crowd differently. It’s really cool to see they’ll use it or suppress it to be at their best.”
Here’s more from Cink’s chat with For The Win, which has been condensed and edited:
What are you doing with the GM BuyPower Card?
We’re all planning for the future and that includes pro golfers like myself and families all across the world and one thing that’s almost always part of planning is purchasing a vehicle. The card helps by allowing you to apply your rewards to purchase a GM vehicle.
What do you think of this U.S. team?
I like the U.S. team a lot, especially our younger core group of players. It’s an interesting dynamic with how they mix in with Tiger Woods on the team. I think everybody’s excited about it. From being in the locker room, everyone’s taking Tiger’s return very well and positively. I think that’ll be a neat thing to watch with the Ryder Cup. It’ll be a positive addition to the team, especially his performance last week. He looks in many ways like the Tiger of old.
What does having Tiger on the team do for the other players?
It kind of does more than one thing. Having Tiger on the team, it felt a little bit like having a leader who’s also playing. He cares a lot about the Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup, he doesn’t like to lose. That spirit of “whatever it takes” is something that goes through the team room. He’ll bring that.
It seems like people are underestimating the European team. What’s your take?
For anyone underestimating the European team, it’s simple: All you have to do is look back at the last 25 years and who’s won the last 12 Ryder Cups. And you’ll see what a team that on paper looks like underdogs and what they can do in the Ryder Cup. It’s the end of the conversation.
(Photo by Ross Kinnaird/Getty Images)
Do you think U.S. has figured out the right way to put together the perfect team?
One thing I always hesitate to use: The phrase “figured this out.” As soon as you say you figured something out – you hear a player say, “I finally figured out my putting” – well, what do they do? They putt terribly for six months. It’s a slugfest from the very first tee shot and someone gets knocked down early. And when you get knocked down early, it’s tough to come back. There’s no statistics or historical information to provide a real glimpse into who’s going to get knocked down first. I don’t think we have it figured out. I think the players are a little bit more in control of some of the picks and planning and scheduling. That takes away contention that players think they were marching to the beat of someone else’s drum.
MORE:
Ohio State reaches new low with offensive graphic promoting ‘silence’
NFL Week 4 picks against the spread: Will Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs cover on ‘MNF’?
Svi Mykhailiuk’s absurd shooting display shows why Lakers were right to pass on LiAngelo Ball
C.C. Sabathia cost himself $500K bonus by getting ejected in protection of teammate
All 32 NFL teams’ 2018 defenses, ranked
Source: Read Full Article