An Unfortunate Couples Retreat

The 74Th Masters was well represented with players from the Northwest making some noise, in one of the most exciting weekends you will ever see at the Masters. And once again Seattle's own Fred Couples excited the crowd with some remarkable play. It might have been nerves that shattered his chances for another green jacket but we can't downplay the gutsy performance by Phil Mickelson. Lefty picked up his third green jacket, joining an exclusive group that includes Gary Player and Nick Faldo to name a few. Faldo has said on numerous occasions that nobody swings it better than Freddy, a swing that hasn't changed since his glory days at O'Dea High School. Couples got off to a great start with birdies on two of the first three holes, but it was an unfortunate double bogey 5 on number 12 that started his fall on the leaderboard. This shot found the water in Rae's Creek, he wasn't as lucky as he was when he won his first green jacket when the ball was hit in the same place but managed to stay up. It was the third iron shot in a row that Couples missed to the right, ending his chances of a second green jacket at 50 years of age.

Another Seattle native, Ryan Moore, dazzled the crowd with a hole-in-one on number 16 to finish in the top 16 and earn another trip to the Masters next year. The top 16 and ties earn invites for the following year. Ryan might have received an invite anyway, showing his respect for the game by sporting a tie. Moore closed with a final round 68, two shots better than Couples' final round 70.

I have a sneaking hunch we haven't heard the last of Fred Couples at the Masters. There's a reason why people call him "Boom Boom".