The PGA of America have opted to appoint Jim Furyk as the US captain for the 2027 Ryder Cup, with Tiger Woods taking himself out of contention to lead the side at Adare Manor.
There seemed to be mixed feelings about the decision to turn back to Jim Furyk.
He oversaw an emphatic defeat at Le Golf National in the 2018 Ryder Cup. Team USA won just 7.5 points from the final four sessions in France.
However, the gamble of appointing Keegan Bradley for Bethpage Black backfired. So it should probably come as no surprise that the PGA of America went for Furyk.
New Ryder Cup captain Jim Furyk has shown that he is prepared to make ruthless decisions
It is an opportunity at redemption for the 2003 US Open champion. And there were signs during his captaincy at the 2024 Presidents Cup that hint that Furyk had learned from what happened six years earlier.
Of course, it is difficult to ever get carried away by USA winning the Presidents Cup. But Furyk did make an impressive statement as he assembled his team.
The most notable omission from his captain’s picks was Justin Thomas. Thomas found himself in 19th in the standings after a disappointing run of form.
He missed five major cuts across 2023 and 2024. However, few would have been shocked if the two-time PGA Championship winner had been included for Royal Montreal – even if they would not have agreed with it.
Thomas has been arguably Team USA’s best player in team competitions since his debut at the 2017 Presidents Cup.
He won four points from five matches the following year in France.
He also seemed to be finding some form. Thomas posted a 65 in the final round of the Tour Championship to finish in a tie for 14th having started the week at the back of the field.
Justin Thomas at least made Jim Furyk’s decision before the Presidents Cup a difficult one
Thomas had been a controversial pick for the 2023 Ryder Cup, but he ended up being one of the Americans’ better players in Rome. Admittedly, that was not too difficult.
Nevertheless, Furyk opted to leave him out for the trip to Canada.
Obviously, Team USA was significantly stronger on paper anyway. It also must not be forgotten that the International team blew their opponents away on Friday and won the session 5-0.
But Furyk did show that he was prepared to make a tough call and leave one of Team USA’s biggest stalwarts at home.
At a time when the list of potential candidates for the captaincy was incredibly underwhelming, that certainly should count for something.
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