At least Shane Lowry got to see Phil Mickelson’s escapology up-close and personal, for the Masters itself – from his perspective – proved to be a disappointing and frustrating experience where it took until the 14th hole of a final round 74 for eight-over-par 296 before he could allow a smile to cross his face.
“I love playing golf with Phil. He hit some shots that I’m kind of right there enjoying as a spectator more than anything else. When I saw the draw, I was excited to go out and play a Masters Sunday with him. He lived up to his name. He hit some unbelievable shots,” remarked Lowry of playing with Phil the Thrill.
On a more serious footnote, though, Lowry’s grand expectations of adding a second career Major to his Curriculum Vitae – to go with his Claret Jug of 2019 – were undone in the opening two rounds and, in a case of better late than never, there was better feel with the putter in hand on the homeward run as he moves on to a favoured place at Hilton Head for this week’s RBS Heritage, a signature event on the PGA Tour.
“I played all right golf throughout the week, just made a lot of bogeys, a lot of bogeys. No big mistakes, nothing disastrous. Just a lot of bogeys,” lamented Lowry. He was right: 19 bogeys proved to be too heavy a load to carry, while he also had no fewer than six three-putts in the tournament. “I just didn’t really hole my par putts when I needed to. When you do that early on around this course, you get behind the black ball, and it was just tough. I took it on the chin the past few days that I wasn’t going to contend and I was just doing my best to finish as high up the leaderboard as I could … I went out, I tried, I failed and I will be back again!”
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Lowry will lick his wounds and move on, with this week’s tour stop at Hilton Head bringing the additional benefits of sharing a house with Tommy Fleetwood’s family so that his mind can be rested before going again. “It’s over now. I’m going to go back to the drawing board and see what I can do next week,” he said.
Indeed, Lowry’s scheduling will mean he follows the Augusta National with Hilton Head – where he was third in 2022 – followed by a novel two-man team event with Rory McIlroy in the Zurich Classic in New Orleans. Then there is a break before heading to Valhalla for the US PGA Championship, the second Major of the year.
“I’m getting to a stage now in my career that I’m going back to Major venues that I already know, so I feel like I’m getting old. But that’s nice, going back to Valhalla this year and back to Pinehurst [for the US Open], back to Troon [for the Open], so that’s nice, and all the golf courses.
“Obviously, Masters week, you put a lot of pressure on yourself, it means a lot. But they all mean a lot, to be honest. Every tournament means a lot out here on tour. I think for me this week is probably the most special week of the year. Disappointed not to give it a decent run this year. Yeah, hopefully, I have a few more years left of giving it a run out here.”
And more chances, only in the Majors these days, to play with Phil the Thrill.
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