Kevin Costner has made plenty of sports movies over the years, but there’s something particularly memorable about watching him try to win the U.S. Open in Tin Cup.
The golf comedy arrived in theaters 30 years ago today, on August 16, 1996. Three decades later, it remains one of the most recognizable golf movies of its era, and a new ranking from Golfweek has put it among the best the genre has to offer.
That’s pretty good company. The list includes some of the most beloved golf movies ever made, including Caddyshack and Happy Gilmore, with Tin Cup landing among the top five.
The movie may not have the absurdity of Caddyshack or the slapstick comedy of Happy Gilmore, but it has something else going for it: Kevin Costner. Obviously.
Kevin Costner Was Perfect for ‘Tin Cup’
Costner stars as Roy McAvoy, a former golf prodigy who never quite lived up to his potential.
After washing out of professional golf, Roy is living in a trailer and running a driving range in West Texas. His life changes when Molly Griswold, a psychologist played by Rene Russo, shows up looking for golf lessons.
There’s just one problem: Molly is dating Roy’s former college teammate, David Simms, played by Don Johnson. Roy decides the best way to win Molly over is to prove that he still belongs among the best golfers in the world.
Naturally, this leads him to attempt to qualify for the U.S. Open.
And Roy’s biggest strength is also his biggest problem. He’s extremely talented, but he has a habit of making the absolute worst possible decision when a safer one is sitting right in front of him. That’s essentially the entire movie in a nutshell.
Tin Cup Wasn’t Exactly a Critical Darling
The movie wasn’t universally praised when it came out.
Tin Cup currently has a 73% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes, with the site’s consensus praising Costner’s amiable performance while describing the movie as a breezy sports comedy. Its audience score is 65%.
It also performed reasonably well at the box office. The film opened at No. 1 in August 1996 and ultimately made about $53.8 million worldwide against a reported $45 million budget.
Costner’s performance was one of the movie’s biggest strengths. He had already established himself as one of Hollywood’s go-to sports-movie stars with Bull Durham and Field of Dreams, and Tin Cup gave him another character who could combine athletic ability with a healthy dose of self-sabotage.
He also reportedly trained extensively with professional golfer and commentator Gary McCord for the role, and many of Costner’s golf shots in the movie were actually performed by the actor himself.
30 Years Later, Tin Cup Still Holds Up
Tin Cup has become one of those movies that has aged better than its original reception might suggest.
It’s funny without being completely ridiculous, romantic without letting the love story take over, and filled with enough actual golf to appeal to people who know the difference between a birdie and a bogey.
This story was originally published by Men’s Journal on Aug 17, 2026, where it first appeared in the Entertainment section. Add Men’s Journal as a Preferred Source by clicking here.