Jim Furyk's reason for captaining the US Ryder Cup team is not redemption

Jim Furyk's first trip as captain of the United States Ryder Cup team ended in a historic loss in France, where Europe defeated the Americans 17.5 to 10.5 at Le Golf National. The result of that clash saw Furyk shoulder a lot of the blame, even though his players failed to do their part.

In the 2020 discussion no No SleepFuryk noted that, of course, he would do things differently in retrospect. Who wouldn't give an obvious result?

“I've had a number of people come up and say, 'You know, if you had to do it all over again, would you do something different?' And I almost laughed. I'm like, 'Well, what kind of arrogant asshole would make the party go wrong and say, 'No. I'm going to do everything the same way?'” Furyk said No Sleep in 2020. “Of course I could do things differently. Hindsight is 20-20 and of course I would go back and change. [things]. At that time, I look at my vice captains, I look at my math team, I look at a lot of different things, and I'm the CEO, I'm the one who has to pull the trigger and make those decisions, and I thought we were doing the right thing. I will change [things]? Definitely. I think we can all do it.”

Nine years after that loss in Paris, Furyk will get his chance to do things differently. Last week, the PGA of America announced that Furyk, 55, will captain the United States in 2027 at Adare Manor in Ireland. Furyk's appointment comes after Tiger Woods, the leading golfer, announced he was retiring from golf to focus on his personal life following his drunken driving arrest in late March. With Woods withdrawing his name from consideration, the PGA of America named Furyk to become the fourth American to become a two-time captain since 1979.

But why would Jim Furyk want someone else to go overseas as captain, especially after the United States was defeated in Rome in 2023 and lost at home in Bethpage Black in 2025? Furyk's answer is not that he wants to be redeemed for the mistakes made in France. It is because of his belief in the current team of Americans, who already know him well as the captain of the President's Cup in 2024 and as the vice-captain of the Ryder Cup in 2021, '23 and '25.

“I think they're not really playing,” Furyk told NBC's Mike Tirico at the Kentucky Derby on Saturday. “I mean, I know this generation very well with the Presidents Cups, the Ryder Cups.

“I love these guys. They show heart, courage, passion. I see how much they love to compete and I know how badly they want to win the Ryder Cup. So I love team sports. I love coming together, pulling together, having these guys in the locker room. And that's why.”

Furyk also announced on Saturday that Stewart Cink and Justin Leonard will be vice-captains on his staff at the 2027 Ryder Cup.

On Wednesday, before the Cadillac Tournament at Trump National Doral, World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler identified two qualities that make Furyk a good captain for Team USA.

“Jim is a really good leader,” Scheffler said. “He's extremely organized in the way he goes about things. I think Jim, too, has a lot of experience in a lot of team situations, whether it's playing or captaining. The guy's been around those teams for a long time. He's had a long career out there and he's been good for as long as he's played for the team, and he's a great guy to be a good captain and help me bring a lot of experience. He's got a lot of experience at the table. a lot.

The United States has not won the Ryder Cup in Europe since 1993. Luke Donald is now Europe's most successful captain and will return for a third in 2027. Furyk and the Americans face an uphill battle in Ireland next September. That's the climb Furyk has been trying to help Team USA with for a long time.

The Ryder Cup has been a part of Jim Furyk's life for 30 years. That includes wins as a player in Brookline and Valhalla, and that brutal loss in Paris as a captain. That was expected to be the end of Jim Furyk's Ryder Cup story, with Woods and Phil Mickelson expected to take the captain's banner in the 2020s. Things didn't happen that way.

Now, Furyk gets a chance to rewrite the final chapter.