And the best news is that Cink starts this final round with a fighting chance.
The last time he played with Woods in the final group was last month at the Buick Invitational, when Cink started eight shots behind.
"It seems like more often than not, I've been trailing by eight or 10 shots," Cink said with a grin.
His last victory came at Firestone in 2004, when he built a five-shot lead over Woods and two others, winning by four. Two years later, Cink made up three-shot deficit against Woods over the last three holes, losing in a four-hole playoff.
Experience, among other things, still favors the world's No. 1 player.
This will be the fourth time Woods has reached the final match, losing to Darren Clarke in 2000, winning in 2003 and 2004. Cink had never made it past the quarterfinals until Saturday.
Cink is 0-for-85 on the PGA Tour since his last victory. During that time, Woods is 22-for-56.
"It feels great just to get this far," Cink said. "To be in the final, it's going to be a blast."
It will be the sixth All-American final in 10 years of this World Golf Championship.
None played better Saturday than Cink. He built an early lead against U.S. Open champion Angel Cabrera and pulled away with four birdies in a five-hole stretch on the back nine for a 3-and-2 victory in the quarterfinals.
That his semifinal match against Leonard went 16 holes was a minor miracle.
Cink holed a chip to match birdies with Leonard at the third hole, took a 2-up lead with birdies on the next two holes, then knocked in a 20-foot eagle putt on the seventh and made a birdie putt from that range on No. 8 to lead by four.
Woods had a tougher battle.
He and Stenson halved seven of the first nine holes, and Woods had to hang on with a 15-foot birdie putt on the eighth with Stenson already in close range, and a 10-foot par on the ninth. After Woods' chipped in for eagle, Stenson stayed close until tying him on the 16th.
"He's been pushed a few times this week, and that's all any of us can do," Stenson said. "Eventually, we'll get him."
Cink got him once, but it was too long ago to remember.
He was at Georgia Tech when a Woods-led Stanford team came out to the Atlanta area. A day before the practice sessions, Cink played Woods at Druid Hills and beat him.
"I've known him practically as long as anybody else on tour has probably known Tiger Woods," Cink said. "He's just fun to play with. When you play with him in the latter part of the tournaments, it means you're doing something well."
