Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Furyk takes next step as Ryder Cup captain
With 17 career PGA Tour victories and north of $67 million in career earnings, Jim Furyk became the most successful Chester County golfer a long time ago. But the West Chester native entered a new stratosphere last week when he was named captain of the 2018 U.S. Ryder Cup team.
“It’s a very proud moment,” said Furyk, 46.
“I think that as a player, we all look at things we’ve accomplished, scores we’ve shot, tournaments we’ve won. But to have the confidence of your peers; to have The Ryder Cup Committee … kind of give you the tap on the shoulder and the nod and supply that confidence that we want you to lead the next team, it’s very special.”
Reportedly a unanimous choice, Furyk admitted that it took him “less than a second” to accept the job. During the press conference announcing his captaincy on Jan. 11, Furyk became emotional when thanking his par-
ents, Linda and Mike Furyk. Formerly a golf professional at West Chester Golf and Country Club, Mike Furyk had a similar position in May of 1970 at nearby Edgmont Country Club when his son was born at Chester County Hospital. He’s been Jim’s only coach throughout his golfing career.
“I want to thank my mother and father,” Furyk said. “My dad was a PGA professional. He’s been in this business now for over 45 years. (They are) two very special people. We have a very close-knit family, and they made a lot of sacrifices, and always made sure to put their son first.”
The 2003 U.S. Open
champion, Furyk made headlines last summer when he carded the lowest 18-hole score in PGA history -- a 58 in the final round of the Travelers Championship in Cromwell, Ct.
“There been a lot of rounds by a lot of great players ahead of me that have never reached 58,” Furyk said back on Aug. 7.
“To have a small place in history is simply a dream.”
Although he’s made nine Ryder Cup appearances as a player, Furyk’s results have been mixed. He was instrumental in helping the U.S. to wins in 1999 and 2008, but also sports a 10-20-4 alltime record. It marks more Ryder Cup losses than any other American.
“You can learn from your mistakes, and if you look at my record, I’ve learned a lot,” Furyk laughed.
He is, however, the most experienced Ryder Cup participant ever to be named to U.S. captain. Furyk served as vice captain under Davis Love III during the U.S.’s 1711 triumph last fall at Hazeltine.
“It’s no secret; it’s been my favorite event my entire career,” Furyk said. “In my opinion, the Ryder Cup embodies everything special about golf.”
France will host the
2018 Ryder Cup at Le Golf National, a club about 15 miles west of Paris. The U.S. hasn’t won a Ryder Cup on European spoil in a quarter century.
Furyk’s first order of business was naming Love as one of his assistants.
“Davis did a wonderful job (as captain),” Furyk said. “We had a vision here over a couple of years ago. Davis did a wonderful job putting that vision into place, and it’ll be my job now to kind of keep the ball rolling, keep the momentum going, and not really reinvent anything, but kind of nip, tuck, tweak, and try to improve on a successful campaign in 2016.”
Currently ranked 37th in the World Golf Rankings, Furyk said he hopes to continue playing regularly on the tour. He was much less open to the idea of becoming the first playing captain for the U.S. in 54 years if he were to qualify for the team.
“I think I can be the captain and I can also play the Tour successfully,” he said. “But if you’re asking what’s more important Ryder Cupwise, I would say being the captain of the Ryder Cup team right now is most important to me rather than playing on the Ryder Cup team.”