Golf: Lowry lifts the Open
Even in the wind and the biblical rain, Shane Lowry made winning the Open look as natural as his “light-up-the-clubhouse grin”, said Christopher Clarey in The New York Times. Having gone into the final round at Royal Portrush with a comfortable four-stroke lead, the 32-year-old Irishman extended it to win his first major by six strokes – “transforming the typically fraught closing holes into a merry march through the drizzle”. His timing was impeccable: this was the first time the championship had been held in Northern Ireland in 68 years, and “his compatriots – Irish and Northern Irish alike – accompanied him with song, roars and good cheer”.
How Lowry needed this victory, said James
Corrigan in The Daily Telegraph. Three years ago, he went into the final round of the US Open with the same four-shot lead he enjoyed last weekend. But on that occasion, he blew it. And in the years that followed, Lowry “lurched into a spiral”. His nerves kept getting the better of him: he made the cut at just two of his next eight majors. And at the Open, a year ago, he hit rock bottom: sitting in the course’s car park, after missing the cut, he broke down in tears. Things have been picking up since the start of this year – he came eighth at the US PGA Championship – yet his confidence was still so low that, even at Royal Portrush, he needed a pep talk from his coach to rally his spirits. Not that you’d have known: Lowry’s golfing was “rock solid” throughout. To think that, before 2007, just one Irish golfer had won a major, said Ewan Murray in The Guardian. Now, following Lowry’s triumph “this small island” can boast five champions in the last 12 years, with an impressive ten titles between them.
It’s not just the Irish who are thriving, said John Hopkins in The Times. Five of the golfers who finished in the top nine on Sunday were British. And it was Tommy Fleetwood, “the ascetic Englishman”, who finished second, just as he did at last year’s US Open. He never really got close to beating Lowry, but it can only be a matter of time before he picks up his first major. The biggest British disappointment, once again, was Rory McIlroy, said Derek Lawrenson in The Mail on Sunday. Competing in his native Northern Ireland, this would have been the perfect moment to end the five-year drought since his last major title. But at the Open, McIlroy started so badly he was unable to recover, and missed the cut. For only the second season in his career, he has failed to finish in the top five at any of the year’s majors. McIlroy’s woes are truly perplexing: away from the majors, he is “the most consistent player in the game”. For anyone who loves golf, this ongoing struggle is “heartbreaking to watch”.