Team USA fans have good reason to fear the prospect of the side sleepwalking into yet another Ryder Cup loss on European soil when the event takes place at Adare Manor in 2027.
You would have to go back to the month Bryson DeChambeau was born for the last time an American team won an away Ryder Cup.
Have America made a mistake appointing Jim Furyk as captain?
Jim Furyk is the man tasked with overseeing Team USA’s plans for next year. Of course, Furyk captained the side that lost heavily in France nearly eight years ago. He was also a part of Keegan Bradley‘s backroom team at Bethpage last September.
With that, it will appear to some to be an uninspiring choice to return to Furyk. But, perhaps more worryingly, it hints that the PGA of America have not learned from a past mistake.
Team USA seem determined to not try and replicate Europe’s success in the Ryder Cup
Team Europe looks like a machine. They are probably already preparing for the 2029 Ryder Cup as well as 2027’s event. But they also make sure to retain the legendary figures from the Ryder Cups gone by.
The likes of Jose Maria Olazabal and Thomas Bjorn were vice-captains to Luke Donald in New York last year. Meanwhile, Paul McGinley remains heavily involved with the planning.
All three men previously captained Europe to Ryder Cup glory.
Furyk’s appointment hints that Team USA have once again shunned the idea of utilising all of the knowledge at their disposal.
Admittedly, Team USA do not have as many victorious captains to call upon. But the likes of Tom Watson, Paul Azinger, and Davis Love III have a huge amount to offer.
Based on the fact that Azinger called for one of Justin Leonard, Stewart Cink, or David Toms to become the next captain last October, it really does appear that the PGA of America have decided against listening to those who have had success in the event.
Paul Azinger should be one of the most prominent voices Team USA listen to ahead of the 2027 Ryder Cup
Azinger’s 2008 triumph should have been hugely significant. The week at Valhalla ended a run of three straight wins for Europe. The pod system seemed to be an extremely smart way to put his team together.
Oddly, Team USA moved away from that almost immediately. They would not get their hands on the Ryder Cup again until 2016.
Appointing Azinger as captain again would have evoked memories of Tom Watson’s appointment in 2014. Unfortunately, Watson could not recapture the magic of 1993 more than two decades later.
But Azinger should certainly be one of the most prominent voices being heard behind the scenes right now.
The fact that he never mentioned Furyk as the 2027 captain suggests that the PGA of America are in no mood to listen.
It is certainly another big gamble.
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