Furyk

SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. - When Jim Furyk appeared between the gallery ropes at Shinnecock Hills yesterday, he caught a few folks unaware. Furyk had surgery on his left wrist March 22 and had been told he might miss three to six months while recovering. This being New York, he had played only two holes of his unexpected practice round before he began getting some feedback on his surprise appearance. "Welcome back, Jim," a course marshal said. "I hope you win." Furyk laughed and said, "I hope I start."

ROCHESTER, N.Y. - Four years ago, Tiger Woods came to the PGA Championship at Medinah outside Chicago in the midst of a major championship drought. He had been supplanted by David Duval as the world's top-ranked player. There were even questions as to whether Woods would regain the PGA Tour Player of the Year award that Duval had won the previous year. Woods answered those questions with a one-shot victory. The debate about who was the PGA Tour's top player was as short-lived as Gigli.

OLYMPIA FIELDS, Ill. - All over the country, 25-handicap golfers with hitches in their backswings and cross-handed putting grips are feeling a little better about their games. Jim Furyk, who took the imperfect swing taught him by his father as a youngster to improbable heights, won the 103rd U.S. Open last night at Olympia Fields. Not only did Furyk win the first major championship of his 10-year career, but he did it rather easily. It seemed fitting that Furyk, given his restrained personality, won without any dramatics.

OLYMPIA FIELDS, Ill. - Jim Furyk joined Tiger Woods in the record books of the U.S. Open yesterday, not once but three times. Woods, who obliterated the field at Pebble Beach three years ago, was not a factor. As Furyk became the third player in tournament history to get to double digits under par, Woods played his way out of serious contention in the third round of the 103rd U.S. Open at Olympia Fields. Furyk finished a round of 3-under-par 67 with a 30-foot birdie putt that put him at 10-under par for the third time in a stretch of 10 holes, helping him break the previous 54-hole Open scoring record by three strokes.

OLYMPIA FIELDS, Ill. - Is this the U.S. Open or the FBR Capital Open? Is this Olympia Fields or Strawberry Fields? After two rounds of the 103rd Open - U.S., not FBR - nothing seems real here, either. And there's nothing to worry about, even if your ball finds the junk. How else do you explain Jim Furyk setting a 36-hole scoring record for the Open with a 7-under-par 133 after shooting a bogey-free, 4-under 66 yesterday. Or Vijay Singh tying Furyk for the lead after making a run at breaking a major-championship scoring record before finishing tied for the mark with a 7-under 63. Furyk and Singh lead by two strokes over Stephen Leaney and Jonathan Byrd.

Selected leaders in clubhouse ... Mark Calcavecchia 79-68-138 -6 Justin Leonard 72-66-138 -6 Rich Beem 72-66-138 -6 Retief Goosen 69-69-138 -6 Pierre Fulke 72-68-140 -4 Kenny Perry 73-68-141 -3 Chris Riley 71-70-141 -3 Jim Furyk 68-73-141 -3 ... and top incomplete rounds Fred Funk -7 through 13 Tiger Woods -3 through 16 Scores. [Page 8c]

CHASKA, Minn. - Watching her husband walk off the 18th green late yesterday afternoon at Hazeltine National Golf Club, Sharon Funk couldn't hold back the tears. Her emotions had to do with more than what Fred Funk accomplished in the 84th PGA Championship's opening round. It was about trying to turn near tragedy into personal triumph. Had Funk won last week's Buick Open - he tied for second - he said he would have dedicated his sixth PGA Tour victory to his 57-year-old brother Bernie, who checked himself into a Florida hospital to start rehabilitation after suffering from alcoholism and depression for years.

AKRON, Ohio - The moral of this story is that if you're going to wait for Tiger Woods to beat himself, you're going to wait an awfully long time and eventually, you're going to lose. Jim Furyk learned that lesson yesterday when he dropped a seven-hole sudden-death playoff to Woods in the NEC Invitational at Firestone Country Club. Furyk went eyeball-to-eyeball with the world's best player for 25 holes, outplayed him tee to green in the playoff and even threw a miracle bunker shot at him on the 72nd hole.

FORT WORTH, Texas -- Tom Watson has won eight major championships. He is the 11th-winningest player in PGA Tour history. He played in four Ryder Cups and was winning captain in 1993.But there was Watson yesterday, shedding tears on the 18th green after winning the 52nd Colonial.It wasn't just the victory for Watson. It was the place in which he did it. It was the way he did it. It was the point in his life, and career, at which he did it.Watson, at the age of 48 years, eight months, 20 days, supplanted Colonial's most legendary figure, Ben Hogan, as the tournament's oldest winner.

...TC BETHESDA -- Tiger Woods isn't only the young American who covets a strong showing in his national tournament this week. As much as Paul Stankowski and Jim Furyk, among others, would love to break through and win their first major championship title, the week will be regarded as a success if they perform two tasks.Score some Ryder Cup points, and impress Tom Kite.The Ryder Cup is one of the more compelling subplots at this week's U.S. Open. The 1992 U.S. Open champion at Pebble Beach, Kite is the captain in charge of bringing the Ryder Cup back to the United States after 1995's loss to Europe.