Cool Couples on upswing
Fred Couples is much loved. He stuck his neck out for Tiger Woods, picking him for the President’s Cup last year and Rory Mcilroy calls him cool. He is 52, celebrating the 20th anniversary of his 1992 Masters win. And now he is in the shared lead at the halfway stage of the 76th Masters. The story doesn’t get any better.
Before the Masters, Woods was seen as coming back; Mcilroy wanted to atone for last year, while Lee Westwood wanted to shed the tag of being the- world’s best not to have won a Major, and Luke Donald was trying to add a Major to his world no. 1 ranking.
Woods slid to 40th after a round of 75, Westwood was still in there at third and Donald barely made the cut at 148. Couples shares the lead with Jason Dufner ( 70), who lost a play- off at the 2011 PGA Championships at five- under 139.
There is a mouth- watering match- up for the third round with Sergio Garcia and Mcilroy going up together at four- under 140. Also at same score were Louis Oosthuizen ( 72) and Westwood ( 73). Couples is at his steadiest at Augusta — 25 cuts in 27 starts and 10 top- 10s. Asked if ‘ it’ can happen, Couples, said, “I believe I can, yes.”
He added, “It’s amazing — it was a great day, and I worked my way up. There are a lot of other guys at 3and 4- under. Well, I guess Jason Dufner is at 5- under, too. Phil ( Mickleson) is out there battling; Sergio played a great round. So for me it’s nice to be in the mix.”
Oosthuizen started the day at four- under but slid to just one- under at the midway stage and then towards the end hauled himself back with birdies on 14th, 16th and 17th. Westwood, all set to hold the sole 36- hole lead at six- under was brought down by the long and muddy 18th where he double bogeyed.
Garcia began the day at even par and rose to fourunder with birdies on the second, fourth, seventh and eighth. He gave away one of those on the ninth, but birdies on the 12th and 15th raised visions of him standing atop the leaderboard, but he then dropped a shot on the tough 18th. Mcilroy was steady with five birdies on the third, fourth, seventh, 13th and 15th holes, but the course took back two of those on the 10th and 17th.