Lowry: This win was for the good guys
Irishman’s joy at beating LIV rebels
SHANE LOWRY last night beat golf’s rebel faction at their 54-hole game and then firmly put them in their place at the microphone. ‘A win for the good guys,’ he said, and no arguments were forthcoming.
If the worst-case scenario for the DP World Tour was a victory for one of the 17 LIV defectors present, then presumably the preference for their flagship BMW PGA Championship was a renowned European star with a flair for pelting the defectors.
For a time that appeared likely to be Rory McIlroy but, after he left his eagle putt an inch short at the last, the gong and £1.1million prize went to his Irish pal. They have been united in their distaste for the rebel faction, and they were ultimately separated on Wentworth’s West Course by just a single stroke in a compelling finish.
By coincidence, it was the same margin of victory McIlroy held over Lowry in winning this tournament in 2014. Funny how things work out, even amid the chaos of what is currently happening in the golfing world.
Lowry, sat in the scorers’ hut with a clean card of 65 and a 17-under-par total, buried his head in his hands when it was all done, which is to say the decisive moment when McIlroy fell a hair short with the 23-foot putt that would have forced a play-off.
No wonder Lowry appeared on the brink of tears because, for all the brilliance of his play this year — the most consistent of his career, with 12 top-15 finishes and a third-place at the Masters — this was his first title victory since The Open in 2019.
‘Even going down the back nine today, the bad shots I’ve hit over the years in contention started to creep into my head,’ said the 35-year-old, who climbs to 19th in the world from 23rd. ‘I’m so happy. Words can’t put into how happy I am, how much this means to me and how much I love this tour. I’m the happiest man in the world right now.’
His win came just four days after he had declared: ‘There are certain guys I just can’t stand being here, to be honest.’
Last night, in victory, he was no less pointed: ‘I wanted to go out and win this tournament for myself, but I think for this tour and everyone that’s stayed loyal to this tour, I feel like this is one for the good guys.’
He was certainly good value for it. In a tournament shortened, following the death of the Queen, to three rounds — the same as any LIV event, as it happens — Lowry did not make a single bogey. Assisted by an eagle on the fourth hole of his final loop and two further birdies on the front nine to get to 14 under, he was well placed to make an assault on the top of the leaderboard, which was briefly occupied by Patrick Reed, the LIV golfer who earlier in the afternoon signed off on the same mark after a 63.
Reed’s presence up there looked awkward for the DP World Tour, but the American was soon replaced by Jon Rahm, whose brilliant 62 brought him to 16 under. That was the new target, but Lowry pulled level with the Spaniard with birdies at 10 and 12. He then survived moderate trouble in parring the 17th before a birdie four on 18 gave him the clubhouse advantage. Over to McIlroy (below). He was brilliant in carding 65 on Saturday, but his closing 67 told of a missed opportunity. He had started a stroke clear of Lowry and only one off the lead, yet he was fractionally loose with his irons for much of the round. An eagle at four was undermined by the Northern Irishman’s three-putt bogey at eight. A missed 10-footer at 11 also looked costly, though four birdies on that back nine at least made it interesting. He remains the leader in Europe’s order of merit, having already won the PGA Tour Championship across the Atlantic last month.
McIlroy said: ‘I think Shane winning softens the blow. If it had been someone else I might not have felt as comfortable with it. Seeing a friend win is always great and I am really happy for him.
‘I struggled today. I didn’t hit my irons very well. I was sort of scrambling a lot but I got the most out of my round. I dug in there and did what I needed to do to give myself a chance going down 18 and that’s all you can ask for.’
Grant Forrest was top Scot after finishing tied 23rd, yet it could have been so much better for the 29-year-old had it not been for a double bogey finish at the par-five 18th.