59: Is It Just Another Number?

Tom Ferrell

Jim Furyk’s career is Hall of Fame-worthy, especially by today’s Hall standards. With a swing that Gary McCord famously described as “an octopus falling out of a tree,” Furyk has won 16 PGA TOUR events, including the 2003 U.S. Open and a TOUR Championship.

Last week, according to the announcers at The BMW Championship – part of the PGA TOUR’s FedEx Cup playoff series – Furyk cemented his place in the history pages with a second round 59 at Conway Farms Golf Club. With a gutsy birdie on his final hole, Furyk became the sixth man in PGA TOUR history to break 60 in an official round. 

Forgive me if I don’t haul out the champagne.

It’s not that a 59 isn’t a stout achievement. But at this point, it’s a little played out. I remember the first one as if it were yesterday. Smooth-swinging Al Geiberger broke golf’s four-minute mile in Memphis in June of 1977.  At the time it seemed like nothing would ever be the same again. Golf had breached the levee, and new lows were a certainty.

So I guess it’s notable that only five others have posted the magic number. And of those, only three of them won. Furyk joined the “other half” of the club – those who shot 59 but failed to capture the title.

For me, the only way a 59 can truly be historic anymore is if and when it comes in a major championship. Sorry, Jim. Great round and all, but…

…I’m waiting on a 58.

 

Water Hazards
A tip of the cap to all of the golf course operators, professionals, superintendents and players who will for months be working to restore their facilities and find normalcy on the course in the wake of the historic floods that struck northern Colorado last week.  We realize that in the face of true destruction and loss golf is just a game. But it plays a role in our lives.  Good luck to all who are rebuilding, on and off the links.

 

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