Cink in contention for popular win as wife continues cancer battle

Stewart Cink doesn’t play on the PGA Tour these days unless his wife, Lisa, who has been battling Stage 4 breast cancer since last April, is feeling well enough to join him.

She is at Torrey Pines near San Diego this week, and, as she watches, the 2009 British Open winner is finding his game.

Cink will enter the final round of the Farmers Insurance Open on Sunday in the mix near the top of a crowded leaderboard, two shots behind joint 54-hole leaders Patrick Rodgers and Brandt Snedeker. At 7-under 209, Cink is again within reach of his first win since defeating Tom Watson in the four-hole playoff for the Claret Jug at Turnberry. Considering that he was once a top-10 mainstay, Cink knows that chances like this can be fleeting, even as he is stringing together top-15 finishes marking a career revival.

“I’m looking forward to it because it’s always a challenge to be in that position and that’s what we’re out here for, to be challenged and to see how you can come through in that environment,” Cink said. “So you don’t get a chance to do it that often, so I’m really looking forward to it.”

While Cink and his wife, and their life and their faith, have been challenged off the course, the Georgia Tech product said seeing Lisa take on her diagnosis and her treatment has helped him deal with the rigors of his profession in a different, better way.

“I think I’ve learned so much from Lisa about how to fight and how to, you know, do what it takes that I thought I could apply some of that to golf,” he said. “She’s really been valiant with her struggle and her battle and I figured if she can do that much and be that disciplined, then why can’t I? It’s a little different when we’re talking about cancer versus golf, but still we’re both seeking something that’s serious, that we’re serious about.”

Cink sought out some advice in parts of his game that were beneath his standards, simultaneously trying to translate that improved technique into confidence that let him play a freer style.

“I’m working really hard, but I’m working hard at not really caring too much about the results,” he said.

However, it would be hard to deny that a win wouldn’t mean an awful lot to Cink, or that a lot of his peers want him to hoist a trophy and have a moment of certainty after nearly a year of questions and soul searching. In fact, the guy co-leading the golf tournament wouldn’t mind seeing that.

“I don’t think any guy out here is not rooting for Stewart,” said Snedeker. “We all want to see him do well and hopefully see Lisa hug him on the 18th green when he wins again. That would be a special moment.”

Ryan Ballengee is a Yahoo Sports contributor. Find him on Facebook and Twitter.