Stewart Cink turns back clock at Valspar Championship, echoes Phil Mickelson

Is it 2004? Or 2024?

It certainly feels like the former, as 2009 British Open champion Stewart Cink holds a share of the Valspar Championship lead through 36 holes.

Cink, who currently plays on the PGA Tour Champions, will turn 51 on May 21st. He most recently tied for seventh at the Cologuard Classic, won by Joe Durant.

Cink now joins the team in Palm Harbor, Fla., and sits atop the leaderboard at 6 under along with Kevin Streelman, Mackenzie Hughes, Brendon Todd and Chandler Phillips.

“It feels great. Honestly, being in contention feels the same no matter where you are,” Cink said after Friday’s round.

“Obviously, the field here at Valspar is a little different than when I teed up at Cologuard in Tucson for the PGA Tour Champions.”

The last time a player over 50 held a share of more than a 36-hole lead in a PGA Tour event was in 2021, when Phil Mickelson and Louis Oosthuizen won the PGA Championship on Kiawah Island. He finished with a score of 5 under par.The Athletic’s Justin Ray Given that statistic after the second round in Florida on Friday.

But Cink achieved another statistical anomaly on Friday.

This year’s Valspar Championship will mark Cink’s 500th appearance on the PGA Tour.

“I didn’t know about it until someone mentioned it to me a while ago, but I think ‘milestone’ is the right word to describe it,” Cink said after the round.

“I’ve been playing here for a long time, and there have been ups and downs, but there have been a lot of good things. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed myself. I think 500 cuts is pretty respectable. A lot. We know players celebrate when an event reaches 500, so we’re proud to have reached that number with your cut.”

The former Georgia Tech Yellow Jacket should be proud of that accomplishment, but he should also be proud of Friday’s play.

Photo credit: Julio Aguilar/Getty Images

Battling tough, windy conditions, Cinque overcame the weather to post a 4-under 67, tying the lowest score of the day.

Only eight players out of 148 signed in the 67s on Friday. 42 players combined to hit shots below par.

“I hit the fairway a little more today and hit the ball solid, which was good,” Sink said.

“This golf course requires it all. You have to play long and accurate off the tee, make smart decisions toward the green, and hit solid approaches. Second, it’s your short game, but you have to play it everywhere. But there’s a reason so many players rave about this course. It takes everything, but so far this week I’ve done everything pretty well.”

Innisbrook’s Copperhead Course is a ball-striking course, and Sink has been hitting the greens better than anyone so far this week. He is currently taking more strokes closer to the green than any other player, gaining 6.950 strokes overall, which is tied for top in the field.

Clearly, at 50 years old, he can still play as one of the best players in the game, so perhaps he will carry this momentum into Sunday to win his ninth PGA Tour title. That must be a story.

Jack Mirko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through.Be sure to check it out @_PlayingThrough Cover more golf. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko In the same way.