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Fred Couples made history during the 2023 edition of The Masters by becoming the oldest player to make the cut at the tournament, aged 63 years and 187 days old. Couples broke the previous record of 63 years and 78 days, which was held by Bernhard Langer.
The Seattle-born golfer carded a 1-under 71 in the first round, the first time he has bettered par in the first round at the Masters since 2014. Couples finished 1-over through 36 holes carding 74 the second round.
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The 1992 Masters champion averaged 290 yards off the tee and hit 23 out of 28 fairways through two rounds. His familiarity with the course gave him great advantage. He had a 72 percent in greens in regulation and averaged 1.64 putts per hole, ranking him in the top of the field.
Couples had just hit his drive on the 18th hole on Friday when play was halted due to a severe storm.
He completed the hole the following day. His second shot was partially blocked by the trees and he was forced to lay up to about 50 yards. He found the green with his third shot but couldn't sink the 20-foot putt for par. He settled for the bogey which was enough to see him through.
According to The Golf Channel, he later said:
“I had 230 [yards] to the hole. All night long I thought, just make a [bogey]. I wasn’t even thinking about a [par], and I made a [bogey].”
Couples said he didn't know about the record until finding out at a dinner that night.
While the American reached the third round of The Masters 2023, several other stars did not, including Rory McIlroy and Justin Thomas.
Couples says after breaking the record during an interview with the PGA Tour:
“It’s not like, ‘Ha, ha, ha, I can screw around and play 36 holes for fun.’ I’m going to try and compete. I can't compete with Viktor Hovland or Jon Rahm or anybody, but I can compete with myself, and that's really why I come. That's what I like to do, is make the cut here at an older age.”
Record for most cuts made and consecutive cuts made at The Masters
Jack Nicklaus made 37 cuts in his 45 appearances at The Masters, holding the record for most cuts made. Fred Couples follows with 31 cuts made during his 39 apperances.
The record for the most consecutive cuts made in The Masters history is held by Tiger Woods at 24 cuts between 1996 and 2024. Fred Couples and Gary Player follow with 23 consecutive cuts made. Woods broke the record during the 2024 edition of the major tournament.
