Open and shut case for Lowry ‘ NO FANS AND MAYHEM COULD BE A BLESSING’
SHANE LOWRY admits he may have a better chance of winning this week’s Irish Open without any “mayhem” from partisan home fans.
The 2019 Open champion and world No30 is the bestranked player in the field at Galgorm Castle in Ballymena, Northern Ireland.
The venue is making its European Tour debut today after the tournament was originally scheduled for the Mount Juliet Estate in County Kilkenny in May before the pandemic.
It is the first of four successive events in the UK with no fans, including the BMW PGA Championship.
Irish ace Lowry, who lifted the Claret Jug at nearby Royal Portrush, said: “I was extremely excited to go to Mount Juliet in front of my home fans as a Major champion. That obviously didn’t happen with everything that went on.
“When this venue and this date came up I felt I wanted to come and play.
“I feel like I owe it to the Irish Open and the tour to support the event to come here to give it my best bet to try to win it again.
“Portrush is only half an hour from here and it is a part of the world I like. I have had some good success here.
“I am here to play the best golf I can and hopefully that is up at the top of the leaderboard at the end of the week.
“I wish there were crowds here. It is weird without them – normally the Irish Open is a bit of mayhem.
“But, if anything, it might help me perform better and play well.
“I probably try a bit too hard in front of home fans and it does me in.
“I always put a bit of pressure on myself to play well but this might keep a bit of the pressure off me and let me be myself.”
Lowry won the Irish Open as an amateur in 2009 and arrives on the back of a 43rdplace finish at the US Open.
He is favourite as Jon Rahm, winner in two of the past three years, is not in the field.
Northern Ireland’s Major champions Rory McIlroy, Graeme McDowell and Darren Clarke are also absent. Lowry went out to practice yesterday to get a first look at the course after returning from America.
“It was probably the toughest course I have ever played,” admitted Lowry, who finished 15 over at Winged Foot. “It was mentally and physically draining over the week. I am probably a little bit drained still.
“But when I get out there a bit of adrenaline will keep me going and I will be OK.” After this week’s action, Lowry has five weeks off to catch up with his wife, Wendy, and daughter, Iris, after more than two months apart while he was playing in the USA. He admitted: “Nine weeks away from them probably affected me towards the end. “It was too difficult because when you play badly you wonder why are you bothering doing this. “It was tough and it was a learning curve, but we are in weird times.”