Miserable at missing the US and British Open cuts, Jim Furyk spent two weeks working on his putting and driving and put himself in contention at the PGA Championship.
The 43-year-old American fired a five-under par 65, missing out on a share of the Oak Hill course record with a bogey on his final hole, to seize the lead at the year’s final major tournament.
“Usually disappointed with ending the day on a bogey but 65 at the PGA is not so bad, so I’m feeling pretty good,” Furyk said.
“I’m happy I played a good round, but I’m wise enough and have been there enough to know it’s only Thursday. Right now we’re jockeying for position.
“You don’t win the golf tournament on Thursday. I know that. Just happy with playing well and putting myself in a good position.”
Furyk has won 16 career titles but his lone major title came at the 2003 US Open.
He has not won any title since the 2010 US PGA Tour Championship and missing the cuts at Merion and Muirfield in the past two months forced him to work on his game harder.
“Missing the cut poorly at the US Open and in the British Open are probably the thorns in my side,” Furyk said.
“Didn’t feel that comfortable with the putter, which put a lot of pressure on the rest of my game and I wasn’t particularly driving the ball that well.
“I worked real hard the last two weeks on fixing those problems and feel very comfortable with what I’m doing with my driver right now. Been doing some work on the putting as well and today was probably one of the best puttings rounds, if not the best, I’ve had this year.
“I did a good job of getting the ball on a good line where I was looking and I was able to manage where I wanted the ball to go.”
Furyk said that when he lost his putting touch he was never worried that it might be gone for good.
“Even at your most hopeless point, when you are really struggling, sometimes it takes a day, a week, a month but eventually you get the putter in your hand and it feels great,” Furyk said. “Felt great today. doesn’t mean it’s going to feel great tomorrow. But I feel like I’m moving in the right direction.”
Furyk can recall near-miss major chances but does not let the memories linger too long.
“This sport beats you up,” he said. “If I played 25 events a year and I win one event a year for my entire career, you would be a hell of a player and you’re going to lose 24 times a year.
“You have got to take your lumps. You are going to have good moments and bad ones. I’ve always been very good about looking at the situation and figuring out how I could have made it better, never really feeling sorry for myself but it gets me down for a while. A couple days later you get over it and start working hard to figure out how you are going to make it better the next time.”
Missed Open cuts spark Furyk's fury at PGA
