(Editor’s note: This is part of a series, looking back at great moments in golf history.)
It had been five painstakingly difficult years for Fred Couples on the PGA Tour without a victory when he returned to his second home of Houston, Texas, for the 2003 Shell Houston Open.
Couples had played collegiately at the University of Houston, and although he’s originally from the Northwest, he felt right at home in the Lone Star state.
After an opening-round 65, and subsequent rounds of 67 and 68, it was on this day in 2003 — April 27 — that Couples fired a 67 to capture a four-stroke victory over the likes of Stuart Appleby, Mark Calcavecchia and Hank Kuehne.
The victory left Couples emotional, as he broke down in a post-round interview.
The victory was Couples’ last on the PGA Tour, although he’s added 13 wins since joining the PGA Tour Champions.
In the process, he became the first University of Houston alum to win the event, which had just moved that year from the TPC at the Woodlands to the Golf Club of Houston.
