When he arrived at the Cougars' athletic dorm, he found some future lifelong friends waiting on him. Future Tour pro Blaine McCallister, longtime Houston teaching pro Paul Marchand and Jim Nantz, a would be college golfer who only needed to see Couples play one time to know his future was in another line of work, and he would become the voice of CBS Sports.
Couples excelled during his time with the University of Houston and has rarely slowed down since. He has won 15 PGA Tour events, most notably the 1992 Masters where his Sunday tee shot on the par 3 12th hole unbelievably stayed on the bank fronting Rae's Creek en route to his first and only major championship.
He later captured the 1996 Players Championship along with creating an unique Couples moment by acing the famed par 3 17th Island Green hole at TPC-Sawgrass, after putting his first shot in the water for a never to be duplicated Couples' par.
In his sometimes home state, Couples has done exceedingly well, winning the 1987 Byron Nelson Classic, finished tied for second in his one and only Texas Open appearance in 2002 and became the only former UH golfer to win the Shell Houston Open in 2003.
The calm, easy-going Couples has also excelled in international play as well. He has played on several Ryder Cup and Presidents' Cup teams, becoming an American hero with his unforgettable shots and clutch putting.
Couples also moved back to Texas, living in Plano for a brief time, owning a home on the fairways of Gleneagles Country Club. He once even paid a surprise visit to a group of startled youngsters at a Gleneagles Junior Clinic as a favor to the teaching pro there.
While a chronically bad back and a new California address limits his Tour appearances and visits back to Texas, he always makes one if not more golfing visits a year, still a Lone Star fan favorite.
He showcased his considerable golf talents at the age of 46 at this year's Masters Tournament, playing in the last group on Sunday with eventual champion Phil Mickelson and finishing tied for third with Tiger Woods and Lewisville's Chad Campbell among others.
While at Augusta National in early April, a place he calls his favorite in the world, Couples took time out to speak with Texas Golfer Senior Writer Art Stricklin, after Thursday's first round and Sunday's finale, reflecting on his game, his career and his longtime Texas ties.
What did your recent great showing and a tie for third at the Masters with a bad back and at age 46 prove to you? That I could still play and compete with the players out there. I didn't play like I was 46, I didn't hit the ball like I was 46, but I putted like I was 66. That was pretty much the story. It was a lot of fun out there and a challenge to play the course and play some of those younger players, like Phil (Mickelson)
Does this type of performance make you want to play more, especially in Dallas and Houston where you've had success in the past? It's encouraging. I was able to make it through 31 holes (on the last day of the Masters) without any problem, but I have to listen to my body and especially my back. Physically, I have been hit with a lot of things and if I had to play all the time, I just couldn't do it. My body feels like it would explode.
I guess that goes back to the saying, 'the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak?' I don't just want to show up at these tournaments and not make the cut or finish 40th all the time. I want to finish near the top of the leader board and I know that's not easy without working and practicing the way you need to do.
Why have you been so successful at the Masters, making 22 consecutive cuts, finishing in the top 10 four times, including your victory in 1992? Well, I guess it's one of my favorite courses in the world and it's one of my favorite tournaments. I put a lot of effort into it and I guess that's why I feel pretty drained afterwards.
How much a factor is it that your former University of Houston suitemate Jim Nantz is so much a part of the Masters as the lead announcer for CBS and you get to hang out together? It's great having Jimmy Nantz here, really great. It's a lot of fun to be around him and to get to see him. We don't have a chance to do that all the time.
Jim is also a part of the Shell Houston Open along with your longtime teacher and former UH suitemate Paul Marchand. Is that part of the reason you enjoy returning to Houston? Sure, that's a big part of the reason. I never know for sure if I'm going to be able to make it because of my back and how I'll be feeling, but I always enjoy seeing them there.
Having gone to school at UH and living for a time in Plano, do you consider yourself a Texas golfer, like so many of the other great ones the Lone Star State has produced? I don't really know about that. It's been a long time since I lived then and I don't have that many ties to Texas left.
One thing people may not know about you is that you can be pretty emotional on the golf course. Jim Nantz has talked about how you cried together after winning the Masters in '92 and you, Jim and Paul formed a tight, tear-filled circle after winning the Houston Open in 2003, why is that? Well, I guess, I'm always emotional when good things happen to nice people. No, seriously, winning the Houston Open (in 2003) was very important to me. It may not have meant much to a lot of people, but it meant a lot of me.
You still have a soft spot for the city and the school it seems? What a great, great city and what a great university. It was very special to have won there. It meant a lot to me.
How did you come from Seattle to the University of Houston? Dave Williams was the legend back then as a college coach and Houston had a dominant golf program. There wasn't hardly anybody who didn't want go there if he asked you to. I think a UH player once said if there were five top players in the country, you could count on Dave to get four of them. Jim Nantz once said he knew he would have to find another line of work other than golf once he saw you play. I don't know about that. We had a pretty good team back then, Blaine McCallister, a lot of great players.
You once had the famous quote, “I don't like to answer the phone because somebody might be there,” and you have the reputation of being pretty laid back. Is that accurate? Just because I take things easy, doesn't mean I can't beat myself up pretty good. I'm not that easy to ride home with after a loss. You can ask my caddy Joe about that. I've rededicated myself (to golf) over the last couple of years and the win at the Shell Houston Open was a big part of that.
Where is your game right now after the Masters? I wasn't shocked I was able to hit the ball so well. In fact, if Phil Mickelson had been putting for me, he probably would have won by 9 or 10-under. I thought from tee to green I hit the ball as well and even better than he did. But you have to makes some putts and my putting (at the Masters) was mediocre or terrible. I missed 2-3 four or five-footers on the first couple of holes which would have given me a chance to put some distance between me and him and really put some pressure on Phil. Playing in the last group, I felt I was one of 5-6 guys who could win the tournament.
Are you still hitting the ball off the tee well? I'm hitting the ball well, certainly for a person my age. I hit it really good at Augusta this year. I must have hit it 100 miles on the 17th hole on Thursday. I hit it really good, I just didn't putt well enough to win. Hitting the ball a long way is still a bit of an advantage out here.
Why is putting such a challenge? You have practice and feel like you have the confidence you're going to make putts. You still have to make putts regularly from 4-8 feet. They're not gimmies. It was pretty frustrating out there trying to make putts. At the end of the round, I was just trying to finish second and Tim (Clark) beat me out of that. It was a frustrating putting day.
Do you understand why fans are still so attracted to you and your easy-going manner, even all these years? Maybe they just like to root for old people. A lot of people at Augusta have been very nice to me over the years. It's always nice to hear the cheers and feel the appreciation. The people in Houston have always been very nice to me as well when I've played there.
Do you still have a passion for the game? I still enjoy it when I'm physically able to play. It's still a great challenge to be out here. It's a great place to be at Augusta National playing in the Masters. It's just a great place to go. If you're here, you're glad you're here, if you're not here, you wish you were here.
How do you size up today's top players, especially Tiger and Phil? Right now, Phil is playing the best. Tiger is still No. 1 in the world, he's the one player you still have to beat every week if he's in the field, but Phil is really close. He'll probably be the favorite at the U.S. Open as he probably should.
Thanks for so many golf memories for so many fans, Fred. Hope to see you in Texas soon. |
