HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. – Tiger Woods suggested last week at the Masters that his future as a potential U.S. Ryder Cup captain for next year’s matches will be made soon, and that choice could also impact this year’s U.S. Presidents Cup team.
Asked on Wednesday during a call with reporters about Woods’ potential status as a vice captain for this year’s Presidents Cup, Jim Furyk’s response offered a glimpse into how the two decisions are intertwined.
“I wonder what the odds in Vegas would be on that right now? Probably not even allowed to talk about that because I would be odds in the gambling side of things,” said Furyk, this year’s Presidents Cup captain. “I’m kind of curious, what are the odds he’s going be the Ryder Cup captain? What do you think about that? Can I turn it around and ask you, is he going to accept that position? I know there was some talks about it in his press conference at the Masters, so I’m kind of waiting to see and hear what happens there.”
Woods led the U.S. Presidents Cup team to victory in 2019 in Australia and is the frontrunner to captain the U.S. Ryder Cup team next year at Bethpage, but that decision has been delayed by the 15-time major winner’s return to competition this season and his position on the PGA Tour’s policy board.
“We’re still talking about it,” Woods said last week at Augusta National. “It’s something that [PGA of America CEO Seth Waugh] and I are going to sit back and talk about it after [the Masters]. I said I’m going to be busy for a couple weeks, so let me focus on getting through this week and hopefully getting another jacket and then we can sit back and talk about it next week.”
Historically, the PGA of America announces Ryder Cup captains much earlier. In 2022, Zach Johnson was named the captain of last year’s team on Feb. 23, and Steve Stricker, who led the American team to victory in 2021, was named captain on Feb. 20, 2019.
This year’s Presidents Cup will be held in September at Royal Montreal.