Couples takes tumble on leaderboard

Fred Couples is no stranger to the 17th hole at Augusta National Golf Club. But something strange happened there Saturday,

Couples’ 111th time to play No. 17 in a competitive round turned disastrous when he hit a tree with his second shot, leading to a triple bogey on the par-4.

The frustrating hole dropped Couples to even par for the tournament.

“I would think it put me out of the running for anything (Sunday),” Couples said. “I don’t think I’ve ever made 7 on 17 in 100 rounds.”

The 1992 Masters champion entered Saturday one shot out of the lead at 5-under and played in the final twosome with Jason Day.

Couples was still at 5-under walking off the 13th green after a birdie produced by a deft wedge shot on his third swing.

The home stretch was not kind to the 53-year-old, who led after two rounds last year
before ending up tied for 12th.
Couples was 5-over par between Nos. 14-17, with a wayward driver putting him in trouble a couple of times. At No. 17, his tee shot landed in the left rough and his next shot hit a tree, forcing him to punch a shot short of the green.

“How bad does it hurt?” Cou­p­les repeated when asked about the triple bogey. “I wouldn’t say it was the hardest shot in the world. It was a pretty good gap, and I tried to hit an 8-iron a little too hard. I didn’t cut it. I hit it straight. I didn’t think I’d hit any of those limbs, but I did. Then it was just a comedy of bad shots.”

Couples did bounce back with a par on No. 18 to end the day with 5-over 77, putting him in a five-way tie for 18th. He will tee it up at 12:50 p.m. today in a pairing with Jason Dufner.

“I was very mediocre,” Couples said of his overall play. “I made a lot of pars. Just some mediocre swings because I was all over the place. I feel bad for Jason (Day) when he waited for me forever on the 17th. I finally thought I wasn’t going to make him wait and I said, ‘You go.’ And he 3-putts.”