Jim Furyk Responds to Presidents Cup Omission with 59 in FedEx Cup Playoffs

Evidently, Jim Furyk felt slighted by his omission from the Presidents Cup team. Fred Couples picked Webb Simpson and rookie Jordan Spieth for the team instead of Furyk.

Furyk has been member of eight Ryder Cup teams and seven Presidents Cup teams. His overall record in Presidents Cup competition is 10-6-2.

The veteran golfer seemed to be saying, "I’ll show you" as he posted only the sixth 59 in PGA Tour history Friday at the BMW Championship. Al Geiberger, Chip Beck, David Duval, Stuart Appleby and Paul Goydos are the only other golfers who have recorded a score of 59 in a PGA Tour event.

Furyk finished No. 13 in the Presidents Cup rankings, just outside of gaining an automatic berth. He had to rely on a captain’s pick from Fred Couples.

That call did not come. Matter of fact, Couples didn’t even call Furyk to tell him he had chosen Simpson and Spieth and left him off the team.

Couples did it via text. When the captain’s picks were announced in a live video conference on September 4th, Couples admitted he just couldn’t handle talking to Furyk on the phone.

Couples and Furyk have been teammates on several Ryder and Presidents Cup teams.

Spieth has had a spectacular year and deserves a spot on the Presidents Cup team. Furyk had a solid year, but he has not won on tour since the 2010 Tour Championship and FedEx Cup.

Furyk’s 59 may just be the best ever in PGA Tour history. It was accomplished on a difficult par-71 Conway Farms Golf Course in a FedEx Cup playoff tournament. The next best scores on Friday were posted by Jimmy Walker and Jordan Spieth. They both shot 65 and were a full six shots higher than Furyk.

He started his round at No. 10 and immediately made birdies on his first three holes. He would go on to birdie six holes, plus make eagle at No. 15 to record an eight-under-par 28 on his first nine holes.  

Birdies at Nos. 2, 3 and 4 got him to 11-under par, and the 59 watch was officially on. His playing companions, Gary Woodland and Jason Dufner, did not even want to talk to him or disrupt his concentration.

A bogey at No. 5 seemed to derail the birdie train briefly, but birdies at Nos. 7 and 9 completed a four-under-par 31 for his back nine.  

Furyk has 16 career PGA Tour wins, including a victory at the the 2003 U.S. Open. His appearance in 15 Ryder and Presidents Cups, plus winning the 2010 FedEx Cup, is probably sufficient to get him a World Golf Hall of Fame nod someday.

This 59 is the icing on the cake to his long and successful career.