“Doesn’t mean it doesn’t work” - Golf pros ft. Rocco Mediate and Ernie Els explain why swinging like the legend Jim Furyk helps in their game
The former US Open winner Jim Furyk is hosting this week's Furyk and Friends Championship for PGA Tour Champions. The senior Tour tournament features players including Rocco Mediate, Ernie Els, and Boo Weekly.
The golfers were highly impressed with Jim Furyk's unique golfing style and have tried to recreate it. The American golfer is known for his unique approach to ball striking, which has helped him over the years to win numerous golf tournaments.
Speaking about Furyk's golf swing, Rocco Mediate said (via Golf Week):
“Just because it didn’t look like everything else doesn’t mean it doesn’t work."
Boo Weekley also spoke about Jim Furyk's swing. He said:
"It's funky. It looks like an octopus in a phone booth. Now I think it's something...I ain't seen it in a while, but I think it's something like this right here or actually, I don't know if there if that's the follow through, but it's something like...he takes it up and he does it up here like this and he does it up here like this and he drops it way in here like this, and then he does the flipper bipper."
Tim Herron said:
"Well, I've been playing with Jim Furyk since college days, and, you know, he's pretty much a Hall of Famer, but he does have a different approach to the game. First, the grip's a double overlap. See how the grip is double overlap. He stands very close to the ball and he's got some twitches with him. So when he gets up there, he's always working on his...where he's lined up. He's got the lines, stands very close. That's a Jim Furyk cut right there, baby."
Ernie Els also tried Furyk's signature move and said:
"The grips, are also a little weird. You know, we all grip it, you know, like that or like that. You kind of sometimes have that double thumb. It seems like, you kind of go there. So that's kind of weird to me. Correct me if I'm wrong. You line it up, and it I remember, it's out and then up and then in. And if I could drive it like you, I would have made a bit more cash. But I think it went like this. Out. Up. And there. You just thump it down the fairway. "
The 2023 Constellation Furyk and Friends completed the first round on Friday. Scott Parel took the lead in the tournament after playing a round of 64. He finished with a score of under eight to have a stroke lead over Jerry Kelly and Brett Quigley.
The second round of the tournament will start on Saturday, October 7, at 6:49 p.m. ET, with Shane Bertsch teeing off on the first hole with Matt Gogel and Jim Furyk. Tim O'Neal will start the game on the tenth hole with Thongchai Jaidee and Y.E. Yang at Timuquana Country Club in Jacksonville Florida.
Jim Furyk's career
Jim Furyk turned professional in 1992 and registered his first professional tournament at the 1993 Nike Mississippi Gulf Classic on the Nike Tour and then joined the PGA Tour the following year.
Furyk has won at least one event from 1998 to 2003 and recorded one of the best golfing streaks behind Tiger Woods.
He won his first major in 2003 at the US Open after registering a three-stroke victory over Stephen Leaney. Furyk has won 29 professional events in his career including 17 on the PGA Tour, one on the European Tour and one on the Sunshine Tour.