PITTSFORD, N.Y. – Jim Furyk has played in every U.S. team competition since 1997, but he’s in danger of missing this year’s Presidents Cup team.
Furyk began this week No. 16 in the U.S. team standings, and his runner-up finish at Oak Hill lifted him to 13th on the list. There are three events remaining (the cutoff is after the Deutsche Bank Championship) for players to automatically qualify via the points system, then captain Fred Couples can make two wild-card selections.
“I’m keeping it in my thoughts,” Furyk said late Sunday. “I cherish playing in those events and I’ve been able to play in 15 of them. I don’t want this to be the year I’m not.
“But you can’t focus on what I have to do to make it. I just have to go play good golf and get better in my off week, then I’ll assess and try to improve.”
Furyk, despite his veteran presence, isn’t a lock for the team, not after his performance last year at Medinah. A captain’s pick for the Ryder Cup team, Furyk went 1-3 during the week, including a pivotal Sunday singles loss to Sergio Garcia, in which he lost the final two holes to drop the match, 1 up. His overall record in the Ryder Cup is 9-17-11.
Furyk is significantly better in the Presidents Cup, boasting a 20-10-3 overall record, but that was helped significantly by his perfect 5-0 record two years ago at Royal Melbourne.