Lowry eyes Ryder Cup after Abu Dhabi joy
SHANE Lowry fixed his sights firmly on the Ryder Cup after winning the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship for a first European Tour title since 2015.
The Irish man produced a magnificent fightback to overturn Richard Sterne’s four-shot lead in the final seven holes and win with a birdie on the 18th.
Lowry suffered a miserable time on the USPGA Tour last year, finishing 138th on the money list and without any top-10 finishes.
But the 31-year-old now leads the Race to Dubai, and is determined to win a place on Padraig Harrington’s Europe team at the 2020 Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits.
“This puts me to where my goal is for the next 18 months, and that’s to be on the plane to Wisconsin with Paddy [Harrington],” Lowry said after a victory set move hime from 75 to around 40 in the Official World Golf Rankings. “That’s where I want to be and I think this is a great stepping stone for that.”
Lowry had not tasted victory since the 2015 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational and he had to do it the hard way as his three-shot overnight lead quickly evaporated.
Sterne had six birdies and a bogey to go out in 31, and Lowry’s fourth bogey of the day on the 11th left him four shots adrift of the South African. But he became the first player in European Tour history to make 11 birdie twos in a tournament when he birdied the 12th and a 30-foot putt on the 13th edged him even closer.
The pressure got to Sterne as he dropped shots at 14 and 16, and a wayward approach opened the door for Lowry, who found the green in two and secured victory with an 18-inch tap-in putt.
“People looking from the outside probably thought I was gone, four behind with seven to play,” Lowry said. “But I’ve had greats chats with my coach this week about just hanging in no matter what I do – just keep going – and it definitely helped me out there.”
Holland’s Joost Luiten finished third three shots behind Lowry, with Louis Oosthuizen fourth and Soren Kjeldsen fifth. Luiten’s lengthy eagle putt on 18 gave him a best-of-the-day 65 and outright third place.
Paul Waring, Pablo Larrazabal and Ian Poulter, who closed with a disappointing 72, shared sixth place on 12 under.
Glasgow golfer Scott Jamieson shared 11th place after a fourth-round 72, while Craigielaw’s Grant Forrest ended the day pointing 75, taking him to five under and 42nd place.
Meanwhile, fellow Scots Robert MacIntyre shared 63rd place on two under with a final-round 73 and Richie Ramsay’s 63rd spot on two over came after a 76.