Fred Couples Represents UH At Masters

Bubba Watson may have won his first career Major Championship Sunday at Augusta National with a thrilling final round playoff win over Louis Oosthuizen, but University of Houston graduate Fred Couples, 52, played a heck of a tournament. Couples finished in a tie for 12th place with 2012 Shell Houston Open winner Hunter Mahan, Kevin Na, Graeme McDowell and Sergio Garcia.

The oldest player to make the cut at Augusta National was Couples, who shared the 2nd round lead heading into Saturday at -5. A rough weekend for Couples resulted in a 75 on Saturday and 72 on Sunday to fall out of the pace that Watson and Oosthuizen set to the end and into the playoff that Watson won.

Couples celebrated his 20-year win at the Masters in 1992 this year with a solid tournament. A former world No.1 player in his prime, Couples' smooth stroke and relaxed attitude on the course showed the faithful at Augusta that he's still got some kick in his game.

A fan favorite, the world would of enjoyed a Couples win at Augusta National, but the veteran will take a Top 12 finish at his age any day of the week. In 2006, Couples had another nice showing at Augusta with a tie for third place finish in 2006 (-4) with Tiger Woods.

Couples now platoons on the Champions Tour and PGA Tour, but when he is in contention "Boom Boom" as they call him is fun to watch and has always had a strong following on the tour. His last PGA Tour win came in 2003 at the Shell Houston Open at age 44.