Furyk looking to regain the magic and get back on track
By Melanie Hauser, PGATOUR.COM Correspondent
The question was one of those reporters simply lob out there just to see what comes back.
Sometimes the player shakes his head and rolls his eyes. Sometimes he doesn't answer. And other times?
GOLF.com tossed this one to Jim Furyk a little while ago -- what if, on your 15th Masters try, you win. What will you serve at the next year at the Champions Dinner?
Furyk went all Pittsburgh -- even if he was born on the other side of the state. A little chicken paprikash. Some ham. Some pierogi. An homage to his ancestry -- mom was Czech and Polish; dad was Ukranian and Hungarian.
You have to figure the dream menu would be as eclectic as that ampersand swing of his, wouldn't you?
Now, it's a matter of getting the first part of the equation done. His best finish at Augusta is a pair of fourths back in the day, including an outside chance to win in 1998. His recent best? A share of 10th in 2009. Last year? A missed cut.
Furyk has always been a realist. He knows he's rounded 40, but he knows he's still in his prime. And a second major is a possibility. Although his best chance this year? Just might be at Congressional where he could add another U.S. Open title to his resume. He did, after all, tie for fifth there in 1997 and he's had three top-7s there at the AT&T National.
But we're getting ahead of ourselves. Long way between then and now. For everyone. Especially the 2003 U.S. Open champ.
Just six months ago, we were still teasing Furyk about that cell phone malfunction at The Barclays. You do need to make sure they're charged, you know. Telling alarm clock jokes. Asking if he'd set everything he could so he wouldn't oversleep and miss another tee time.
Of course, we were also applauding the fact that, despite that disqualification, he still won the 2010 FedExCup. And three tournaments in 2010.
Now? Furyk has fallen into that need-a-jump-start category along with a couple of guys named Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods. You know. The old U.S. Big Three.
Not that he's ever been the fastest starter on the PGA TOUR. Of his 16 wins, only three have come by early March, the last one the then-2001 Mercedes Championships. He's a back-two-thirds guy. You know, Memorial Tournament, U.S. Open, Las Vegas.
So why bring him up now? After a start that includes a top-10 at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions followed by two missed cuts -- almost three -- a first-round loss in the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play and a couple of ho-hum middle-of-the-pack finishes?
Well, this was where the magic started last year. In Tampa. At Innisbrook where he held off K.J. Choi to win the Transitions Championship and get rolling toward a second spring win at the Verizon Heritage.
We'd love to say this will definitely be the start of big things, but given the way this season is going . . . nothing is predictable.
What is? Furyk. On every Cup team since 1997. Not out of the top 10 money winners since 2004 when he was sidelined with wrist surgery. And that swing. No matter how much of a mess it seems, it's always square on impact.
Yet nothing is going smoothly this year. He ranks 154th in scoring, a category where he's been a solid top 10. Even his driving accuracy is down. And he ranks 101st in putting.
He's always been a slowly, but surely type of player. He won his U.S. Open at Olympia Fields with steady pars. He built his career from the Nationwide Tour up. And he went from Cup rookie to veteran leader in the locker room at the most recent Ryder and Presidents Cups.
That he's heading toward 41 -- in May -- and in his 18th season isn't a concern. He may have to introduce himself to the younger players -- or shock them a bit when they see him without his cap off the course -- but he's still right there.
What he did last season speaks volumes. What he could do this year might too.
All he needs to do is get untracked. Get moving.
Motivation? As if he doesn't have enough deep down, all he has to do is look at the FedExCup on his dining room table. Or some table.
He's not a trophy case kind of guy. More like a hey-here-it-is kind of guy.
So go ahead, lob a question. He'll be glad to give you an answer.
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