AUGUSTA, Ga. Couples Fred know something about pain. For nearly half of his 66 years, he has battled debilitating back problems since the Masters two years ago. in such acute distress when hitting short fairways he warmed up with just his driver and 3-wood. In the first round, Couples was so miserable that he wanted to give up, but only resisted because he didn’t want to throw his playing partners out of sync.
Tiger Woods, you’ve probably heard, also knows something about pain. No one can say for sure exactly how many surgeries Woods has had in his professional career (somewhere between “many” and “many”), but we do know that the latest of his seven known back procedures came in October to treat a collapsed disc and compromised spinal canal.
When it was Woods arrested on suspicion of DUI on March 27, he told police he had taken prescription pain medication earlier in the day; police also found opioid pills in Woods’ pocket. On March 31, Woods said in a statement that he was stepping away from the game “to seek treatment and focus on my health” while he works “toward a sustained recovery.” A day later, a Florida judge approved Woods’ request to travel out of state for “comprehensive hospital treatment.”
Chronic pain isn’t the only thing Couples and Woods have in common. They share a bond that dates back to the 1997 Ryder Cup, when Couples first took Woods under his wing. In the years that followed, Woods and Couples became Masters practice partners, dinner buddies and text buddies. They even shared a caddy; Former doubles player, Joe LaCavawent on to spend a dozen years in Woods’ bag. In 2022, Woods referred to Couples as “My father on tour.”
So when Couples completed his practice round Monday here at the 90th Masters Tour, Woods — and his struggles — was a natural talking point. The couple had seen unconfirmed reports that a private jet belonging to Woods had been spotted in Switzerland, but seemed unsure of Woods’ whereabouts. “If he’s in Switzerland,” Couples told reporters, “he should be in a place that will help him and that’s the main thing.”
Couples said he texted Woods a few days after Woods’ car accident and subsequent arrest, but didn’t feel it was his place to ask for information. “For me right now to get involved with that wouldn’t make a lot of sense,” Couples said. “It doesn’t mean I’m not paying attention.”
Couples are not alone in this sense. Woods, who won his fifth Masters title in 2019, has played such a big role in the past 30 years of this annual spring rite of passage that it’s hard. NO think about it when you walk into this storied property. Bubba Watsonwho has two green jackets of his own, said Monday that he “always” pulls for Woods. “I told him from the first day that we started hanging out in ’06, ’07, somewhere around there, that I’m attracted to him as a human being,” Watson said. “Forget his golf, I could care less about his golf.”
Jason Day, who is playing in his 14th Masters and, like Woods, has struggled with back injuries, was also asked to reflect on Woods’ situation. “He’s not immune to (addiction) just because he can hit a golf ball really well,” Day said. “When you’re going through so many procedures, it’s painful to come out of those procedures. I’ve had procedures and I usually try to stay away from all that stuff because I just know that — pain relievers, there can be a drop in it.”
The severity of Couples’ back pain has waxed and waned, but when it’s been more persistent, he said Monday, it has affected his mood. “I bumped into everybody,” Couples said. “It felt like someone was stabbing me in the back all day. After eight to 10 hours, you just can’t take it. It’s like a toothache.”
The pain became so bad in 2011 that Couples could not sleep and reportedly whispering to friends that it can be done with competitive golf. They required drastic time. . . a trip to Dusseldorf, Germany, where the couple underwent a treatment called Orthokine therapy, which involves doctors creating an anti-inflammatory serum with the patient’s own blood. The procedure brought relief to couples – for a while, anyway. “I’m sleeping,” he said a few months later. But the thing about chronic pain is that it is chronic. All you can do is manage it as best you can. Enjoy the most comfortable moments. Endure the unpleasant ones.
Couples was asked Monday what he would say to Woods if he could offer his old friend a piece of advice.
“I would tell him I love him,” Couples said, “and things can always get better.”
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