Captain Jim Furyk reveals the 'dog' strategy he used in America's Presidents Cup win

If 2025 U.S. Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley is serious about recreating the culture that Jim Furyk had been able to foster during last month’s Presidents Cup in Montreal, then he should blare the 2000 Baha Men hit, “Who Let The Dogs Out” in the team room every night.

Furyk sought to instill an attitude of grittiness in his U.S. players at the 15th Presidents Cup, asking them to, essentially, fight like dogs. That explains his comment after the Americans locked up their 10th straight win over the International team at Royal Montreal. “We talked about being a dog all week, being the tougher team,” he said.

The seeds of this theme were planted a few weeks before they arrived in Quebec, Canada, when Furyk, knowing that most members of the American team have dogs, sent each member of the team a leather dog collar stamped with “USA.” A few players brought the collars to Montreal. Xander Schauffele, one of the inspirational leaders, fully embraced the mindset, and he showed his commitment to it by affixing his dog collar to his team backpack.

Furyk’s friendship with former NBA player John Starks provided the inspiration for the idea of appropriating the imagery of a dog—think junkyard variety—as the Americans’ symbol of resolve and resilience.

Wait, John Starks?

“Being a dog, he’s used that term a lot when he talks about folks that he likes on the basketball court or in sports in general,” Furyk said of the one-time All-Star guard for the New York Knicks. “He always says something like, ‘that boy’s got dog in him.’ And he means that it’s being tough, being competitive. So, I wanted to come up with a way to talk about finishing off rounds and finishing off matches and being the tougher team—but without putting stress on someone at the end of the round.

“You’re coming down to the end and you’ve got to hit a fairway or you’ve got to win a hole, but that’s not something you really want to hear. I wanted to come up with a way to create a positivity around finishing off rounds.”

After getting swept in foursomes on the second day at Royal Montreal, the Americans rebounded by winning six of eight matches the following day—thanks in large part to their performance over closing holes—to build a commanding lead on the Internationals.

Apparently, the message even resonated down to the Junior Presidents Cup team. They heard the dog whistle.

“We met with the junior team in our team room,” Furyk began, “and their captain was Charley Hoffman, and we all love Charley Hoffman. We were kind of poking fun at Charley. And I said something to the kids like, ‘Considering you had Charley as your captain, you guys were already starting 2 down; you guys played really well.’ We were really teasing Charley, and a kid in the front went, ‘No man, Charley’s our dog.’ We all started laughing. This kid had our message.”

Furyk hopes that message is carried forward to Bethpage Black when the U.S. tries to win back the Ryder Cup next September. Who let the dogs out? New York fans hope the answer is Keegan Bradley. With an assist from John Starks, maybe?