Triumphant Lowry eyes Augusta

THE Masters is calling once again for Shane Lowry following his Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship success, propelling him back into golf’s top 50. It’s a massive boost for the Offaly man, who didn’t linger long at his lowest ebb after last summer’s British Open attempt fell to pieces and he sacked his long-time caddy Dermot Byrne. After winning the Irish Open as an amateur in 2009, it seemed as though Lowry was bound for bigger glories. However, it would be three years before he won the Portugal Masters in Manchip. Now, just half a year later he becomes the first player in European Tour history to make 11 birdie twos in a tournament as he completed a sensational wire-towire victory. He held off a battling Richard Sterne, reclaiming a lead he had lost from the start of the final round to finish strong and, in turn, surge to the summit of the European Tour’s Race to Dubai. It’s been a whirlwind week for Lowry, to say the least. Days after losing his privileges to play in America, he came to the Abu Dhabi tournament focusing entirely on the European Tour. Now he’s in line for the Masters and a host of elite events once more. ‘It feels great to be holding a trophy again after a couple of rough years on the course,’ said 31-year-old Lowry. ‘In a way, winning like that will do more for me because I showed I can pull off a victory in a proper dogfight.’ Lowry will move back up to around 41st when the latest rankings are released today, with the top 50 in mid-March receiving invitations to the Masters. ‘Obviously my schedule will change a bit now, and I’ll play in two WGC events in Mexico and Texas in March with the aim of staying in the top 50 and getting back to Augusta.’