Senior British Open 2012: Fred Couples' Win Couldn't Be More Satisfying

Fred Couples waited long enough.

He won the 2012 Senior British Open on Sunday with Gary Hallberg two strokes behind. The now-Champions Tour competitor triumphed in just one PGA Tour major in his career, which occurred all the way back in the 1992 Masters. While the Senior British Open isn’t a PGA Tournament, that doesn’t make Couples’ victory any less satisfying.

Sure, the former World No. 1 didn’t technically end a major drought this weekend. He won the Constellation Energy Senior Players Championship in 2011. But the thing is, the Senior Players Championship is the only major that isn’t co-sanctioned with the European Seniors Tour. Because of that, the tournament’s prestige pales in comparison to the Senior British Open.

The result is especially gratifying because the British Open had eluded Couples so many times throughout his PGA career. He finished in the tournament’s top 10 a whopping nine times as well as four in the top five. Talk about getting a monkey off your back.

The Associated Press reported that the 52-year-old golfer talked about his performance after the event. He said (via Los Angeles Times):

"

I've never won an Open Championship, so this is the next best thing. And I believe I now get into the [British] Open at Muirfield next year, which is great. It was a fun day out there…It's my biggest senior tour win by far on a truly great golf course. I can now say I won the Senior British Open at Turnberry in really challenging weather.

"

Yet another tally in the win-column marked Couples’ eighth Championship Tour victory since he began in 2010. With so many triumphs in just three years of action, the one-time PGA force looks like he’s determined to stay on top in the world of golf.

David Daniels is a featured columnist at Bleacher Report and a syndicated writer.

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