Tiger Woods’ thoughts on Fred Couples’ ‘old man’s bag?’ 5 words  

Tiger Woods, looking wrong Fred Couples’ play bag, starts to count. One, two, three. But Couples finishes earlier he needs his 2nd hand. 

Yes, he’s playing six ‘woods.’ 

“One, two, three, four, five, six,” Couples said. 

They’re catching up connected the scope astatine the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club successful Orlando, Fla., a time earlier the PNC Championship, the (mostly) friends pro-relative scramble arena that wraps up the play year. Woods, the 15-time awesome winner, and teenage boy Charlie are playing for the 5th time,  Couples and teenage stepson Hunter Hanneman for the first, and it doesn’t return agelong for Woods’ eyes to drift toward Couples’ play bag. 

It’s drawn immoderate talk since August, erstwhile the PGA Champions circuit societal media contented squad personnel had a look himself. While the ‘standard’ set-up features a driver and possibly 2 aliases 3 fairway woods aliases hybrids, Couples had six headcovers — which led to this exchange, started by the societal team. 

“You person an aged man’s bag.”

“I person six woods,” Couples said. “Driver, 3-wood, 5-wood, 4-rescue, 5-rescue, 6-rescue. 

“And I’m loving life. It’s going to get maine done these 3 days.”

Why’s that? For years, Couples has battled backmost ailments, and irons were problematic, particularly truthful astatine this year’s Masters. “My backmost is shot,” he said astatine the time. “I person much worldly connected conscionable to play. The longer the club, I’m OK. I didn’t person immoderate speed. I was driving it 260. But astir of them were going straight. It was fun. It was really difficult. If I’d person had much woods, honestly, yesterday, I astir apt could person changeable 75, but I didn’t cognize — I benignant of downplayed really bad I felt. I should person had 11-wood to deed 140 yards. I couldn’t moreover deed an 8-iron. I couldn’t swing.”

So Couples made a move. Out came immoderate irons. In came immoderate hybrids. 

“Well, astatine Augusta, I wounded myself, aliases earlier that, and I played, and I really deliberation that if I had each these woods astatine Augusta, I mightiness person — the scores were a small higher, I mightiness person been capable to play better, but I wasn’t moreover really swinging,” Couples said Thursday astatine the PNC. “But I deed these clubs beautiful well.

“And past erstwhile I sewage home, I had a mates companies make maine up a 3-, 4-, 5- and 6-rescue. And honestly, they’ve go my favourite clubs. I’ve picked connected it beautiful speedy — now, again, successful the wind, things tin get a small different. It’s difficult to six a 6-wood aliases rescue aliases hybrid low, but I tin deed it high, and I tin formation it a small bit.

“But conscionable from hitting the ground. You know, I’ve ever deed driver, 3-wood, 5-wood, beautiful well, but I look to wounded myself connected astir 4-, 5-, and 6-irons because you’re still going astatine it really, really hard. I conscionable tried these, and I perfectly emotion them.”

Have location been immoderate comments from friends?

“I wish I owned immoderate company,” Couples said. “They’ve sold a batch of them, aliases group are utilizing them. They’re very easy to hit. And I opportunity this loosely, but if I was 50, 55, I wish I would person had these. I’m a amended 5- and 6-iron subordinate pinch these than I ever was.”

Back to the scope moment, which was captured by the PGA Tour societal media team connected Friday. Woods besides offered a comment. Just 5 words complete 2 sentences. 

“Oh, you person six?” Woods asked aft Couples’ count, laughing. 

“Seriously.”

In the video, Couples past wanted to show him the benefits. He deed one. Couples said it was the balanced of a 5-iron. 

Which drew different Woods’ poke. 

“Is that an 8- aliases a 5-iron?”