A day after he walked off the golf course flexing following an albatross that gave him the lead, Stewart Cink played another stellar round on Sunday to close out a victory at the Hoag Classic at Newport Beach (Calif.) Country Club.
In carding a 5-under-par 66, Cink finished at 19-under 194 for the event, four strokes clear of the rest of the field, for his second win of the season.
“I feel like I’m playing better and have more control over my ball than I’ve ever had ever,” Cink said. “When I was even in the top 10 in the world rankings for a long time, I didn’t ever drive it like I’ve driven it the last six, seven months.”
To wit, Cink is off to an impressive start in 2026, following up his win at the Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai with a second-place finish at the James Hardie Pro Football Hall of Fame Invitational earlier this month.
A week ago, Cink finished in a tie for sixth at the Cologuard Classic, and now he’s a winner again, for the sixth time on the Champions Tour.
“It’s way more than just confidence,” Cink said. “I’ve worked my tail off to try to get there and learned about what my swing does, my body, the dynamics, the psychology, the equipment, everything. I’ve left no stone unturned.”
The 52-year-old eased into his day with a consistent front nine, going bogey-free while pocketing a pair of birdies.
After another par on the 10th, Cink’s day got a little more interesting over the next five holes. Cink went birdie, bogey, par, birdie, birdie to ultimately create more space on his competition.
“I was very aware of where I stood,” Cink said. “But I didn’t have to change anything because I got enough of a lead where I just stuck to the game plan that we had. I didn’t change anything on 17, anything on 18, 15. I executed some of the best of my life really on those holes.”
He finished his day with a birdie on No. 18, where he provided the fireworks on Saturday.
“That was an awesome moment to finish it, finish the round,” he said. “I played great that round and then boom, to do that right there, that was one of the coolest moments I’ve ever been a part of in golf.”
Zach Johnson shot a 6-under 65 to finish in a tie for second at 15 under with South Africa’s Ernie Els (67).
“I think Stewart was just a bit too far away,” Els said. “But I had a really good week.”
Rounding out the top five were three golfers who tied for fourth at 14 under: Charlie Wi (66), Brian Gay (67) and Sweden’s Freddie Jacobson (69).
Reigning champion Miguel Angel Jimenez of Spain landed in a tie for 10th at 12 under after shooting a 67. Day 1 leader Paul Goydos shot a 69 to finish at 8 under, tied for 24th.
–Field Level Media
