Shane Lowry: ‘if I Win Another Open, I’ll Celebrate Twice As Much’

The gable extremity of a location connected Causeway Street successful Portrush delivers a reminder of Shane Lowry’s Open triumph successful 2019. The awesome mural not only depicts Lowry pinch nan Claret Jug successful hand, but really Ireland, whether northbound aliases south, unites down its sportspeople. Lingering memories from six years agone callback Lowry stretching distant from nan section towards nan extremity of information three. He was successful an unassailable position.

The consequent epic, week-long celebrations are different cardinal reference point; nan caller Open champion showed nan sporting world really to statement and it fuelled a misconception, a tired cliche of nan bearded, drinking Irishman.

“I person ever been conscious of that, but I person besides ever enjoyed myself,” Lowry says. “I activity my nuts off. You can’t play astatine this level without doing that. If I triumph different one, I’ll observe doubly arsenic good. It’s truthful difficult retired here, truthful difficult to triumph large tournaments that erstwhile you do, you request to bask them.

“Players came to maine afterwards… I retrieve Martin Kaymer’s caddie telling me: ‘Martin regrets not doing what you did because erstwhile he was winning majors, world No 1, he took it for granted a small bit.’ You request to bask nan moments.”

The Open’s return to Northern Ireland turns thoughts backmost towards what Lowry achieved. The outpouring of emotion was owed successful portion to what he encountered earlier nan past round. He led by 4 pinch 18 holes to play, nan aforesaid advantage he had astatine Oakmont’s 2016 US Open, only to stumble painfully successful Pennsylvania.

A mural of Shane Lowry pinch nan Claret Jug painted connected a location adjacent nan entranceway of Royal Portrush. Photograph: Niall Carson/PA

“It is what you activity for and everything you dream of, but it was 1 of nan toughest 24 hours of my life, successful sporting terms,” says Lowry. “You don’t sleep. People are decidedly tense astir you. It is simply a reliable place. The consequences of nonaccomplishment were truthful huge. If I didn’t triumph that day, I still wouldn’t beryllium complete it. How overmuch it meant, wherever it was, each that stuff.

“Oakmont helped me, 100%. I went retired successful nan last information location not to suffer nan tournament. At Portrush, I went retired to win. I said to Neil [Manchip, Lowry’s coach] that Sunday morning: ‘If I tin make 5 birdies today, cipher tin hit me.’ Even if I made 5 bogeys arsenic good and changeable level, cipher was beating maine successful that weather. That was nan mindset. At Oakmont, I went retired to make pars and fto it each slip.”

Lowry felt astatine location connected nan Dunluce Links and he was roared connected towards triumph by a operation of full strangers and those closest to him. “Until I played my tee changeable connected nan 17th connected Sunday, I didn’t let myself to think, ‘This is it.’ I deed that 1 and realised I could footwear it successful from there, I had a six-shot lead.

“I was looking retired for people. I saw a batch of friends astatine nan apical of nan 18th grandstand. Turning nan dog-leg area astatine nan last, I could spot my daughter… she was only two-and-a-half astatine nan clip and had this agleam yellowish overgarment on. I could spot that correct down nan flag, successful nan passageway astatine nan backmost of nan 18th green. A activity of emotion came complete me. I could person cried.

“I retrieve my caddie saying to maine thing like: ‘Man up, you still person a changeable to hit.’ At nan backmost of nan 18th, astir of nan group who person been hugely influential successful my profession were there. My parents were there, my coach, Graeme McDowell, Pádraig Harrington. It was incredible.”

Shane Lowry emerges from nan assemblage connected nan 18th arsenic he walks up nan fairway holding a five-shot lead astatine nan 2019 Open. Photograph: Action Plus Sports Images/Alamy

Lowry utilized to regularly watch footage of his Open glory. He does little of that now. “I would springiness thing to beryllium capable to guidelines location and acquisition nan 18th spread again,” he says. “It each happened truthful quickly that it really is for illustration a blur. The only measurement you tin spot yourself location is by looking astatine videos. It’s astonishing to person each nan YouTube videos, for my kids and hopefully grandkids erstwhile everyone gets older.”

The 1 objection was that round 3 run. While en way to a 63, Lowry played nan backmost 9 successful 30. Portrush had been battered into submission arsenic he led nan section a merry dance. “People talk astir being successful nan zone. Those past 4 aliases 5 holes, that is nan 1 clip successful my profession wherever I felt that and thought I knew what it was.

“I felt for illustration I was going to birdie each hole. If I had different 9 holes to play, I felt for illustration I would birdie each of them arsenic well. That is wherever I won nan tournament.”

Lowry’s triumph thigh was distorted by nan presence of a pandemic. At nan 2020 Players Championship, play followed nan world inclination of shutdown. “A batch of group were successful acold worse situations than me, but I felt a small difficult done by wherever it was each a spot weird going to nan biggest events arsenic nan Open champion,” Lowry says. “I didn’t get nan afloat experience.

“My crippled besides suffered during Covid. Rory [McIlroy] was nan same. We played a lot, played really good successful games against each other, past we would travel connected circuit and nan deficiency of crowds and power affected us. I really hated that.

“I retrieve going location from Sawgrass and being a small mislaid for a fewer weeks. I had spent adjacent to 20 years pinch a purpose, pinch thing to activity towards, past 1 time it was taken away. I realised really fortunate we person it erstwhile things sewage backmost to normal.”

Lowry has joked that McIlroy’s expansive slam triumph takes attraction disconnected him for nan Portrush return. Yet it is simply a truism that 1 truthful talented should really person much than 1 awesome to their name. “It decidedly helps that I person 1 because if I didn’t by now, it would beryllium doing my caput in,” he says.

“I person to accent this is not maine lacking drive, but if I was to battalion it successful coming I would beryllium beautiful happy pinch what I have. That doesn’t astatine each mean I don’t want more.”