Padraig Harrington and Stewart Cink are tied atop the U.S. Senior Open leaderboard after Friday’s second round, setting up a weekend showdown at the challenging Broadmoor course in Colorado Springs.
The duo, along with Mark Hensby, share the lead at 6-under 134. Cink rallied with a blistering 31 on the front nine to erase a five-shot deficit to Harrington during their second straight day playing together.
“If anything, he’d be a little bit longer than me,” Harrington said of Cink. “But I suppose I know his game enough that I can see what’s happening, as well. He is definitely a partner I would choose to play with.”
Both players are the only two averaging more than 300 yards off the tee on the PGA Tour Champions, making them well-suited for the hilly, altitude-affected course where distance control is particularly tricky.
Hensby matched his opening 67 with another 3-under round, finishing with back-to-back birdies. He’s been dominant on the front nine, playing it at 9-under for the tournament, while struggling to a 3-over total on the back.
His 14th birdie came at the par-3 eighth after his tee shot struck playing partner Doug Barron’s ball on the green. He then two-putted from 20 feet on the par-5 ninth—the easiest hole on the course—to grab his share of the lead.
Cink has been remarkably consistent, hitting 35 of 36 greens in regulation through two rounds. But the 2009 Open champion downplayed that stat’s importance at the Broadmoor.
“You don’t want to be chipping downhill on this course, it’s not a secret,” said the 52-year-old, who’s playing in his first U.S. Senior Open.
His two-putt birdie from 45 feet on the ninth hole capped a tournament-best 66.
Harrington, who won this championship in 2022, looked poised to build a substantial lead after shooting 31 on the difficult back nine. But a pair of three-putts led to costly bogeys.
“I was hoping I’d make more of it,” Harrington said. “I made a mis-club on 15 to make bogey, and then obviously going into the front nine you’re hoping to make some birdies. Nothing is guaranteed.”
The three-time major champion salvaged his round with a clutch 20-foot birdie from a greenside bunker on his final hole.
“I got a lovely read off Stewart. I don’t think I would have given it as much break, so that was nice,” Harrington said. “They’re the breaks you get when things are going well.”
The Broadmoor’s notoriously difficult greens, which cant away from Cheyenne Mountain looming above the course, have been a significant challenge for the field.
Several big names missed the cut, including 12-time senior major champion Bernhard Langer (77) and two-time major winner Angel Cabrera (75), both finishing three shots off the cut line. David Toms, who won when the Senior Open last visited the Broadmoor in 2018, birdied his final hole to make the cut on the number.
Cink and Harrington have limited history playing together, meeting just twice in Ryder Cup matches in 2002 and 2004, with Cink winning both encounters.
“I love watching him play. I would hope that he probably feels similarly about me,” Cink said. “We have mutual respect for each other. He’s a world-class player and he’s been doing it a long time. I would love it if we could go the distance here.”
