Until someone gives a better, more appropriate answer, you could experiment with selecting the poly faces where you want your beard and attach the fur to just those faces. Or maybe duplicate those faces and tweak the shape, then slighty push the faces into the character and attach your fur.
I don't have fur with my Maya so I'm totally guessing. Just didn't like seeing your thread unanswered yet hehe.
Don't be satisfied with what you can do but rather strive to do the things you can't do!
Exceed Expectations!