PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, Va. -- Jim Furyk’s toughness has never been questioned, but it’s being put to the test at this week’s Presidents Cup.

Furyk injured the right intercostal muscles in his rib cage during the first round of last week’s 84 LUMBER Classic, forcing him to go easy in his preparation for The Presidents Cup. But during his opening Foursomes match Thursday with Fred Funk, those muscles started to spasm, and he played from the sixth hole on at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in severe pain while getting frequent massage therapy and treatment from chiropractor Tom LaFountain.

Whether or not Furyk can continue to compete in this biennial match play competition is unknown.

Furyk, 35, and Funk managed to halve their alternate shot match against Vijay Singh and Mark Hensby of the International Team. He is paired with Tiger Woods in Friday’s final Four-ball match against Hensby and Stuart Appleby.

Should Furyk be unable to play Friday, Woods would face Appleby in a singles match. International Team captain Gary Player already has designated the Aussie as his choice against Woods if such a decision is necessary. If Furyk begins the match but cannot complete it, Woods would have to play alone against Hensby and Appleby.

“If anyone can play two guys by himself, it’s Tiger Woods, but even for him it would be a tall order,” Player said.

A former U.S. Open champion playing in his fourth Presidents Cup, Furyk rested last weekend and did not play 18 holes any of the practice days leading up to Thursday’s opening foursomes. Heading to the first tee, though, he knew he might have a problem. He felt good on the range until the final few swings. Then pain settled in.

“I knew it was going to be a struggle,” he said. “I made it through the first three or four holes before calling for a physiotherapist. Honestly, if they didn’t come out, I wouldn’t have made it the whole round.”

U.S. captain Jack Nicklaus paired Furyk with Woods because the two had requested earlier in the week to be paired together in Four-ball competition. He is sending them out in the last group to give Furyk the maximum amount of time to prepare for the round. He said he has no say in whether Furyk will compete.

“He’ll either tell me he can start and play or he’ll tell me he can’t,” Nicklaus said. “I don’t have an input in that. I think the spirit of the matches are that we want everybody to play. I think both Gary and I feel that way. I think that Jim would like to play. And Tiger said to me ‘Hey, he’ll be all right. He’ll play.'”

“I just have to keep in close contact with our captain, and let him know how I’m feeling at all times,” Furyk said. “I want to be a benefit to the team. I want to go out there and try to help win points. I can only do that if I’m healthy and feeling good. I told them they are going to have to cart me off before I quit.”