Couples ready for final-round challenge at
Masters; Tiger 5 back
By PATRICK McMANAMON / Scripps Howard News Service
AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Phil Mickelson took his shot.
So did Mark O'Meara. And Jay Haas, Paul Azinger and Jim Furyk.
All and more took their swings at Fred Couples.
But none landed near him.
On a picturesque Saturday afternoon when Augusta National gave
in and yielded some lower scores, there was Couples, steady and
easy and staying in the lead after three rounds of The Masters.
While others faded after brief charges amid ideal conditions,
Couples stayed the course, shooting a one-under-par 71 to finish
at six-under 210.
"I started the day tied and now I'm two ahead," Couples
said. "There's nothing wrong with that."
Then he glanced sideways at the leader board, saw several big
names within five or six shots of him and realized what awaited
him in the final round.
"There are a lot more guys in there," he said. "I
can't shoot the same score I did today and win." Are there
ever a lot of guys in there. Eighteen players are within six shots
of Couples' total, the closest Phil Mickelson (who shot 69 but
gave away strokes on the last three holes), Mark O'Meara (68)
and Paul Azinger (69), all at 212.
Jim Furyk and David Duval are tied at 213. And within striking
range are Jose Maria Olazabal (214), Colin Montgomerie (215),
Tiger Woods (215) and Ernie Els (215).
"There's too many guys," Couples said. "Tiger
Woods can shoot 66. Davis Love. Jay Haas. If anyone on that board
shoots four under, I have to shoot even or a couple under to win.
That's not easy. I don't expect it to be easy."
"It'll be exciting," Mickelson said. "Because
there will be a number of guys within six shots who can make something
happen early. Then you'll have a bunch of guys who have a great
opportunity come the back side. I anticipate there will be six
to 10 guys who could make some noise on the back side."
Woods never got going and shot even par 72 to finish five back,
but said that's a deficit he can make up. The game's premier elder
statesman agreed.
"I wouldn't count Tiger out," said Jack Nicklaus.
"Same score as I am."
That statement produced chuckles, but Nicklaus drew huge roars
on the course with a 70 that brought back memories of 1986, when
he charged in the final round to shoot 65 and win his sixth Masters.
"I'm obviously very proud of the score I've got,"
Nicklaus said. "But I think the competitor inside me says,
'Jack I don't care what age you are, I think you can still play
well and win.' Whether that's realistic or unrealistic, laugh
at me if you want, I've got to think that way. That's just the
way I am."
All told, it sets up what could be a furious final round, though
if any one player would be difficult to chase it would be Couples,
the 1992 champion.
Some guys may tense up on the final day, or become more nervous
as the final holes arrive.
Not Couples. He plays with the calm of a soft summer breeze.
"I'm nervous, but I'm a calm nervous," he said. Seriously.
Then he explained. "I'm not jumping around, running around,"
he said. "There's so many things going on; I just try to
stay as calm as I can."
A bad back limits the number of tournaments he can play, so
Couples has pointed to the big ones. The past month, he's worked
and practiced almost exclusively for Augusta. "It's a big
tournament and it's my favorite tournament,' he said. "It's
paid off. Whatever happens tomorrow I'll take a few weeks off.
But I'm thrilled to death that a little practice and a lot of
confidence have gone a long way the first three rounds."
Couples now can be the first person to go box to wire leading
The Masters since Seve Ballesteros led or was tied for the lead
in all four rounds in 1980. Couples led after the first round
by one, was tied with David Duval after the second and leads three
by two after Saturday.
He knows players like Olazabal and Woods will start firing
at pins, trying to shoot a 65. He'll try to get off to a good
start and maintain what he's built.
A little luck wouldn't hurt either, just as it helped six years
ago when his tee shot at No. 12 on Sunday miraculously stayed
on the bank instead of rolling into the water. He saved par and
won by two strokes. "I'm not going to play in the lead,"
he said. "There's no such thing as a lead here."
He also knows that everything that happened the first three
days was only a prelude.
"It'll be a big day," he said. "I just hope
I'm not a mental midget."
(Patrick McManamon is national sportswriter for Scripps Howard
News Service.)
|
