With the 2012 Masters starting to get down to the final stretch, it’s time for Fred Couples and his relaxed approach to show why he was good enough to win the tournament once already.

The 1992 Masters Green Jacket winner has the patience now that he is 52 years old to conquer this course and keep himself towards the top of the leaderboard.

After years of pushing too hard and never getting the elite wins he had been searching for besides his Masters win, Couples went back to the drawing board and just decided to relax.

Couples told the Washington Post about avoiding stress and just playing his game:

I don’t feel too much stress. Obviously there’s stress out there. But when [I’m] playing here, I’m not going to let too many things bother me. It’s so beautiful. You can’t say it’s your favorite place [in golf] and then break a club on the fourth hole on Saturday.

How many times have you seen a golfer have great success early in his career, lose it and struggle for a long period of time before reinventing themselves as they mature? Couples is just the latest example.

While PGA veteran Darren Clarke never won a Major before, it was his early success followed by a drought that culminated in the 2011 British Open that mirrors exactly what Couples could be facing this weekend at Augusta.

If Couples can keep the same mindset and not over analyze the situations he is presented with, there is no question that he will be able to walk away with yet another Masters title.

 

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