SHANE Lowry confessed he failed to have a picture with the giant mural celebrating his Open win — even though it is 25 feet high!
The painting of Lowry raising the Claret Jug the last time the Open was held at Portrush in 2019 covers the entire side of a house. And it is just around the corner from the course.
But when he made his first trip back to the scene of his greatest triumph before last September’s Irish Open at the Royal County Down, Lowry and his team forgot to make the detour.
He said: “I’ll be honest, we were in a rush leaving Portrush and we totally forgot about going in to see it!
“We were ten miles down the road and we suddenly realised we didn’t get a picture of me standing in front of it, which we’d fully intended to do.
“By then it was too late to turn back because we were on our way to the Irish Open. But I’ve seen it since and I think it’s pretty cool.
“People keep sending me pictures standing beside it — some of them I can’t say what they’re doing in it! I’ve done something special in my life and they’ve acknowledged that. I think that’s pretty cool.”
But Clara man Lowry, 38, is keen to make even more great memories in Portrush this weekend. And he is set to begin his first round on Thursday — with his Irish compatriot Pádraig Harrington to hit the first tee shot that morning.
Lowry’s preparations for The Open saw him opt against playing the Scottish Open. He instead played on Irish courses at Portmarnock, The Island, Baltray, Waterville, Old Head and Adare Manor.
And Lowry also attended Saturday’s All-Ireland SFC semi-final between Kerry and Tyrone at Croke Park.
The Offaly man said: “It has been an amazing couple of weeks. I haven’t been home to Ireland since Christmas, so it’s nice to be back home and I feel rejuvenated.
“I played too much golf — nine of 11 weeks — leading into the US Open and that got the better of me. That’s my own fault. I’ve had a couple of weeks to take a step back and I do feel ready.
“I played well the last two days so that’s not good. Sometimes when everything is going really well, I get complacent and then I’m three-over through five and have a panic.
“Here in 2019, I had a meltdown on the Wednesday because I felt like I wasn’t going to play well but that focused me. When things are not going well, I’m at my best.”
And even missing the cut at the last two Majors has not dimmed Lowry’s confidence this week.
Lowry followed up a 42nd-placed finish at The Masters with early exits at the PGA Championship at Quail Hollow and the US Open at Oakmont.
But he won his lone Major at Portrush in 2019 by finishing 15 under to defeat Tommy Fleetwood by six strokes.
And the Offaly man said: “I kind of pride myself on not missing cuts.
“I feel like I can always get myself there or thereabouts in the big events. But I’ve been consistently good this year.
“I’ve given myself a couple of chances to win, which I’m disappointed that I didn’t. But we’ve got a few months left to kind of redeem myself and get a win on the board.”
And he knows he must pick up a win for the year to count as a successful one after being in a tie for second at the Truist Championship in May and coming second at Pebble Beach in February.
Lowry — who is 17th in the FedEx Cup standings — added: “No matter how well you’re playing, if you don’t have a win beside your name at least once, you don’t class it as being very good.
“My season has been going . . . I’ve got a good FedExCup ranking.
“Things have been going all right.”
