In his time on Arizona's golf team, 1988-92, Jim Furyk was never the No. 1 golfer. When the Wildcats won the 1992 NCAA championship, Furyk occupied the No. 4 spot in the lineup behind Manny Zerman, David Berganio and Harry Rudolph. He played 176 tournament rounds at the UA, but never won a championship.
But once Furyk qualified for the PGA Tour in 1995, he blossomed. He's won 17 PGA Tour events, the U.S. Open and been captain of the USA Ryder Cup team. He was ranked in the Top 10 of the world rankings for 441 weeks.
Jim Furyk launches one of his tee shots to the 17th green of the Players Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass during The Players Championship Celebrity Charity Shootout.
Furyk will be front and center again this week when he serves as the top analyst for the USA Network's coverage of the U.S. Open, June 18-21, and also serve as a studio analyst for Golf Channel.
Arizona rose to the status of an NCAA golf power from 1988-92, a time the Wildcats won 18 individual tournaments. Furyk didn't win any of them. He has $72 million in official earnings, still No. 5 in golf history. The only thing he hasn't accomplished in his remarkable post-Arizona career is to be elected to the World Golf Hall of Fame, as have ex-Wildcats Lorena Ochoa and Annika Sorenstam. That should be the next big event in Furyk's wonderful golf career.
Greg Hansen's picks for Mount Rushmore of University of Arizona coaches
