Shane Lowry: How The Irish Golfer Battled It Out To Win The Open

Shane Lowry is the new British Open champion.

The man from Clara in Offaly romped home at Royal Portrush yesterday by all of eight strokes, in the process becoming the fifth Irishman to win the Open; and the sixth to win one of men’s professional golf's four Major tournaments. Previous Irish major winners include Fred Daly, Padraig Harrington, Graeme McDowell, Darren Clarke and Rory McIlroy.

Lowry's performance all week in Royal Portrush was outstanding. He opened with an impressive 67 and repeated that score to become joint leader at the half-way stage. However, it was on Saturday that he turned the screws: his 63 was a record on the revamped course, and it took him four shots clear of the field, giving him the best ever three-round score in the British Open at 197.

It was not an unassailable position. Lowry himself had led the US Open – one of three Stateside majors – by four shots, going into the final round, back in 2016. There must have been a niggle at the back of his mind that the same thing might just happen again.

As it transpired, his performance was imperious. There were some good scores from players who were out early in what was then relatively benign weather, with Francesco Molinari hitting a fine 66. But once the rain had hit, and the wind came up, more or less everyone wilted to one degree or another. England’s Justin Rose sank to a miserable 79, from a potentially challenging position on 204. Recent Irish Open winner Jon Rahm from Spain shot a 75 to end on 281. Majors specialist Brooks Koepka – who might have been feared, hovering on 204 – shot a 74.

The weather phased Shane Lowry less than most. There was a moment when it became obvious that none of the potential challengers was coming good. It was down to him and another Englishman, who happens to look like a heavy metal fan, Tommy Fleetwood.

Fleetwood was Shane Lowry’s playing partner and so the Irishman was in position to keep a weather eye on any sign of momentum gathering. On a couple of occasions, there was a hint that the pendulum might be about to swing in Fleetwood’s direction – most notably on the first hole, where the Irishman had to make a tricky putt to salvage a bogey and Fleetwood had a real chance of a birdie. From a psychological perspective, a swing of three shots at the start of the round would have been potentially calamitous. In the context, the loss of a single shot came almost as a relief.

In the end, it was Fleetwood who buckled, his double-bogey on the 14th hole effectively being the clincher. When Lowry birdied the 15th, the title was his. And so it proved. He carded 72 to Fleetwood’s 74, giving him a final margin of six strokes.

Golf tournaments are often won by serious margins; this was certainly no once-off. But, by any standards, it was a masterful performance, which will go down in Irish golfing annals. That it will change Shane Lowry’s life forever goes without saying: when it comes to sponsorship deals, appearance fees and all the rest of the money-making opportunities that exist in golf, major winners are in an elite category. He has more or less permanent Open qualification. The doors to other majors are also open for some time to come. He moves up to No.17 in the World Rankings. And so on.

But what made the win especially memorable is that it took place on Irish soil. Being in Portrush meant that Shane Lowry’s family were on hand to celebrate with him afterwards. The pictures of him with his wife Wendy and their two year-old daughter Iris were lovely to see. But so too were the images of his father – a former All-Ireland winner in football with Offaly – dancing a jig of success and embracing his son.

This link to the GAA is one of the qualities that is most impressive about Shane Lowry. He is a real local lad made good, and one who retains a huge sense of the importance of community. There were marvellous scenes too at Esker Hills, the small club – it has only 220 members – where Shane Lowry learned to play his golf, near Tullamore. At every stage, you could sense that Lowry is the kind of guy who, no matter how high he flies, will always feel most at home among the people he grew up with and around.

The good-will that has flowed in his direction in the aftermath of his win tells its own story. He is a hugely popular player because he is also a hugely unassuming one. The game of golf is cruel. The margins are so fine. Going into the final round, the pressure was all on Shane Lowry. And when you look at just how easy it was for Rory McIlroy– one of the greatest players of the modern era – to blow it with a 79 on the opening day of this year’s British Open tournament, well, you know just how badly awry things can go.

But the Offaly man had the inner calm, the strength and the resolve not to let the pressure get to him. It couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy.

• Hot Press met Shane Lowry back in 2015. Here is how we got on with the future British Open Champion: https://www.hotpress.com/opinion/georgia-on-his-mind-shane-lowry-is-us-masters-bound-13713941