Stewart Cink British Open Q&A: The 2009 champ recalls Tom Watson's big mistake and more

AYRSHIRE, Scotland — Fifteen years ago, Stewart Cink, one of the most affable, kind and sincere humans, let alone golfers, became one of sport’s biggest villains for defeating sentimental favorite Tom Watson in a playoff at Turnberry to win the British Open and be crowned Champion Golfer of the Year. Virtually everyone but Cink’s immediate family was rooting for the 59-year-old eight-time major champion to have one more moment of glory. Cink was a James Bond villain except he succeeded in making the kill.

Fifteen years later, he still hears about it all the time. During an interview in Detroit at the Rocket Mortgage Classic, he told a local interviewer, “More often than not, people are saying why did you have to beat Tom Watson, my favorite golfer. To me it feels like it was yesterday, I know it was a lot longer than yesterday, and it’s a pretty fresh memory in people’s mind too.”

Cink, 51, is still battling to play with the big boys while dipping in from time to time to play the senior circuit. He took a stroll down memory lane last month from seat 3B of his Delta Airlines flight home to Atlanta from Buffalo after competing in the RBC Canadian Open and trying to qualify for the U.S. Open in Final Qualifying.