What’s in Tiger’s bag?

Throwing out the first pitch at that game back in August when the New York Yankees hosted their cross-town rival Mets was certainly a thrill. And it’s not every night you dine at Versailles or have breakfast the following morning with Emmanuel Macron at the Palais de L’Elysee where the French president lives. But the neatest thing U.S. Captain Jim Furyk got to do during the two-year lead-up to the Ryder Cup? Well, that had to be hitting balls off the Eiffel Tower toward the Champs de Mars with his European counterpart Thomas Bjorn. “Pretty cool,â€� Furyk says. “I have to give that one the nod. Not too many people have done that.â€� Only one other person, in fact. And a life-size photo of Arnold Palmer – hitting a ball off the first floor of the iconic landmark in October of 1976 – loomed nearby as the two captains took their shots.  Of course, Furyk hopes to have another memorable moment this week at Le Golf National outside Paris as the United States attempts to win on foreign soil for the first time since 1993 when the Americans took a 15-13 victory at The Belfry in Sutton Coldfield, England. It’s been 21 months since Furyk, who played in nine Ryder Cups, was named the U.S. captain. His last as a player was in 2014 but he’s spent the last three international competitions in the team room as an assistant captain at the 2015 and ’17 Presidents Cups and 2016 Ryder Cup. So it’s not like anything has surprised Furyk, the 17-time PGA TOUR champ who won the 2010 FedExCup. But he admits he’s been busier overall — and life became exponentially more hectic as the summer months led to finalizing his team. Furyk says his wife, Tabitha, took on a lot of responsibility. The PGA of America, which operates the Ryder Cup, provided a support team, as well, to make sure all the loose ends got tied up. Ryder cup captains Thomas Bjorn and Jim Furyk hit balls off the Eiffel Tower last October. (Getty Images) Furyk also kept in daily touch with his vice captains – two-time Ryder Cup captain Davis Love III and Steve Stricker, who was at the helm of the 2017 Presidents Cup, as well as the more recent additions to his staff, Zach Johnson, David Duval and Matt Kuchar – through a texting chain. Tiger Woods, once an assistant who ended up playing his way onto the team, was a part of that group, as well. Picks, potential pairings and preparation all were part of the on-going discussion. “Sometimes there’s 20 to 40 messages a day, sometimes there’s a couple,â€� Furyk said during the Wyndham Championship. “We’ve done this together for the last couple of years as well with Davis being the captain with Strick being the captain. “So we work well together and it’s got a lot of similar feel to what we’ve done in the past.â€� Away from the golf course there were other decisions that had to be made. Gifts for players, wives, caddies and dignitaries were chosen. Uniforms were another important consideration — remember those shirts the Americans wore on Sunday at the 1999 Ryder Cup? – so Furyk went to the offices of Ralph Lauren in New York last fall to look at potential designs. “They kind of showed me the look book; here’s what we’re thinking about,â€� Furyk recalls. “We made a few minor tweaks — things that I may like to see or for some comfort, movement. But they make a great product and, and they’ve been doing it for so long now they understand the drill.â€� That didn’t stop Furyk from making a few suggestions for “good luck.â€� Not that he was willing to divulge them, though. Maybe we’ll find out when the week is over. Furyk says his wife and two children, 16-year-old Caleigh and Tanner, who’s 14, have been very understanding when his “jobâ€� as Ryder Cup captain kept him away from their Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida home.  “My family’s always been very understanding of my job with my travel schedule and we’re very close knit,â€� Furyk says. “(The kids are) excited about it as well. So we include them and talk a lot about it with them and they kind of understand the opportunity I have. … “So yeah, it’s taken me away a little bit. But first and foremost I’d say family is always going to be first and Ryder Cup second. My game’s been probably a distant third this year.â€� While Furyk’s beloved Pittsburgh Steelers were picking up their first win of the season on Monday night, he was in France in full Ryder Cup mode. The pressure will only ratchet up as the week progresses. Furyk has seen it as a player, and he’s lived it for nearly two years as the captain. This year’s stage – and stakes – couldn’t be bigger. And whether it’s the sportswriters who dissected his every word in the last two years or the fans who offered advice on his picks as he walked down the fairway, Furyk is well aware of the impact this week will have. “I guess I know how big the Ryder Cup is,â€� he says. “I know it’s my favorite event. But I’m still probably surprised by just the amount of attention that it draws and how big an event it is — not only in the world of golf but how it kind of transcends golf.â€�

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He’s had to fight through swing changes, and the blisters that come with swing changes, to find his missing game. It’s only one round, but perhaps he’s located it in Detroit, at a tournament in which his name is on the marquee.

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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Webb Simpson birdied the final two holes of regulation to force a playoff with Tony Finau, then won the Waste Management Phoenix Open with a 10-foot birdie putt on the first extra hole Sunday. Finau, two strokes ahead with two holes left, missed an 18-foot birdie try in the playoff on the par-4 18th after driving left into the church pew bunkers. Related: Leaderboard | Amy paying it forward Simpson, who moved to second in the FedExCup standings with the win, two-putted for birdie from the fringe on the short par-4 17th and made a 17-footer for birdie from the edge of the green on the 18th. Finau, after hitting a 366-yard drive and an approach to 8 feet, missed a chance to win when his birdie try slid right. Simpson closed with a 2-under 69 to match Finau at 17-under 267 at TPC Scottsdale. Finau shot 70. The 34-year-old Simpson won his sixth PGA TOUR title and first since 2018 at THE PLAYERS Championship. The 2012 U.S. Open champion improved to 2-6 in playoffs, three years after falling to Hideki Matsuyama in extra holes at TPC Scottsdale. Simpson also lost to Tyler Duncan on the second extra hole in November in the RSM Classic. Finau missed a chance for his second PGA TOUR victory. The 30-year-old Ryder and Presidents Cup player won the 2016 Puerto Rico Open, played opposite a World Golf Championships event. A stroke ahead of Simpson after a third-round 62, Finau parred the first seven holes, limiting his birdie chances with sluggish iron and wedge play. He bogeyed the par-4 eighth to end a 57-hole bogey-free streak, leaving an 8-iron from the fairway 65 feet short. Finau made a big par save on the par-4 10th, holing a 25-footer to only lose one stroke after Simpson ran in a 5-footer for birdie and the lead. Finau pulled even with an 18-foot birdie putt on the par-3 12th, a day after Simpson aced the hole in a 64. Finau made a 9-foot birdie putt on the par-5 13th to increase the lead to two and made the advantage three with a par on the par-5 15th after Simpson drove into the water. They each parred the the par-3 stadium 16th, with Finau wearing a Kobe Bryant jersey on the rowdy hole. The PGA TOUR cut the pin position in a tribute to Bryant, using his two Lakers uniform numbers. The pin was placed 24 yards from the front edge and 8 yards from the left edge, putting it in the back left corner. The flag had an 8 one side and a 24 on the other, and the numbers also were painted into the grass in front of the green. Fourth-ranked Justin Thomas tied for third at 14-under after a 65, birdieing the 16th in a jersey from Bryant’s days at Lower Merion High School. Bubba Watson and Nate Lashley also finished at 14 under. Watson closed with a 66, and Lashley shot 68.

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