Shane Lowry Returns to Portrush | A Walk Down Memory Lane

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In this emotional return to Royal Portrush, Shane Lowry walks down the iconic 18th hole where he sealed his unforgettable 2019 Open Championship victory.

As he retraces his steps from that historic Sunday, Shane reflects on the pressure of holding the lead, the roar of the home crowd, and the life-changing moment when he realised he was about to become Champion Golfer of the Year.

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only a million times [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] with a score of 269. The winner of the gold medal and the champion golfer of the year is Shane Larry. [Applause] coming off the 17th green. Um, actually, how many times have you been back since in the six years?
I’ve actually only been back once. Back last September. Um, here to do a golf outing, but yeah, I’ve only been back once. I obviously I live in Florida now, so I don’t get to spend much time in Ireland and yeah, driving up here hasn’t been easy. It hasn’t been easy to get up here, but uh yeah, came back last September and even but coming back now like this is my first day back and seeing all the grand stands. would bring back a lot of memories like
that final round. It looked as if you were in control throughout. I think what Tommy got within four shots at one time, but yeah, I think he had a put over on the 12th screen to get to three behind. I think he had an eagle put there and then uh I made a good up and down on 13 and then he doubled 14 and I met bogey and I went five ahead there. Honestly, the stuff that goes through your head when you’re in that situation is is wild. But I wouldn’t allow myself to like breathe a sigh of relief until after 17.
Really?
Yeah. I hated the 17 T-shot that week for some reason. Kind of a blind t-shot. And then uh Yeah. So once I got that out of the way, I was pretty happy after that.
So I think you’re six shots clear coming back here to the 18th. But even on the 18th T, you know, six shots clear, but you can see you’re still right. I’ve still got to get this.
Yeah. At the end of the day, you’re a professional. So like you want to I still don’t want to make a bogey or you know I I want to do it as best I can. So I mean you still want to play the hole well and uh you never take out for granted in this game. So like obviously it would have been the greatest disaster of all time but t-shot’s not exactly easy. Uh
yeah but this is the first time you’ve stood on this tea with this
look. This is exactly pretty much how it looked in 2019.
Yeah it is. And it it the wind is a bit different today. It was more like down I think when we played it cuz I hit two iron and I hit a seven iron in. It was more out of left actually. Um but yeah like the that hospitality on the left looks a lot closer than I remember. But um
was it just a we driving iron? It was a
Yeah, like a two iron. I just hit it down the right hand side and h once I did that I was like oh my god like you know
you could see it. Have you watched the the final halls back? I
I’ve watched it a few times. I haven’t actually haven’t watched it in a while, but I mean in the years after that.
Yeah, it’s great. Everything’s on YouTube now. You get to click off and watch them whenever you want. So,
yeah,
on the RNA’s official channel.
But, um, when you hit that shot and it hits the fairway, you can see there’s actually a real puff of the cheeks and that’s it.
I think it was I probably turned to Bo and I said like we’ve done it like open like it’s you know it’s like honestly I get goosebumps thinking about it. You know, you get to do it in front of everybody. Like the scenes here were incredible.
Let’s walk down the 18th end because you hit the fairway and actually you can see as you’re saying you’re talking to
to Bo is that you know Bo Martin ansterman as well. There’s something really special. Oh yeah. Like Bo grew up playing the north of Ireland up here. He grew up in our glass like not far away and like Port Rush to someone like him would be you know it’s like almost like you know mecca like it’s it’s in in Northern Ireland for golf. Um and then you know the fact that me and him came here together and won won the open is you know we could only dream about it like and even you know like myself and Bo uh we finished um a couple of years ago and like I always said to him like no matter what happened no matter what happens like we always have poor rush together like it’s an amazing achievement that we got to do together. Oh yeah,
but you it was amazing because you had that sort of that that buffer so you could enjoy it, but also you had
almost two um celebrations coming down the last hole because the atmosphere on the Saturday. Oh yeah.
With a 63 was like a Sunday. It was extraordinary.
Yeah. Honestly, the Saturday and um the Saturday was the most incredible afternoon I’ve ever had in the course. And it’s funny, I I stood on the 17T with Bo after I hit my t-shirt on the Saturday. It’s weird the stuff you do. There’s so much time in the golfer. It takes you like four or five hours to play around. So, you got so much time to think. But I said to Bo walking up to 17 that I kind of stopped the two of us and I said, “Let’s try and enjoy this next 20 minutes because who knows if this is ever going to happen again.” And this is only on a Saturday, you know. And
I I birdied 17 and then I came down here. I played the 18. Uh I just missed puffer birdie to take a four shot lead and yeah it was honestly the adrenaline rush from that it was that’s not only was it hard to sleep with a four shot lead but after all that it was hard to get to sleep that night and there obviously just so much going through your head but um the next 24 hours were pretty difficult.
So back to the the Sunday walk down here as you said you’re enjoying that moment with Bo and you got your arms around each other. What
what are you say? Can you remember what you’re saying? probably I I definitely told him I love them. Uh not so sure that’s the case anymore. But I know uh
yeah, look, I I I think it’s just I was going to I was going to say disbelief, but it’s not disbelief because you always believe you can do something like that, but I think it’s just uh a lot of relief at that stage because like I built it up so much uh that morning. Morning We’ve tried to replicate the the feeling of the Sunday at the open by just getting the green covers. Hey, they do the most valuable job here. And the roar of the crowd, there’s a bit of drilling going on building final build over there.
So again, yeah, sort of walking down. Can you remember with each sort of step of where you were on the 18th fairway that the
Yeah, I I I can’t I actually remember walking down here and and soaking all in and if you look at the videos back, Tommy was beside me and obviously, you know, it’s not great if not a great situation for him. uh you know out there trying to win the open and he’s not doing it and there’s probably not many people on the course that wanted him to win that day. Um but yeah, we walked down here. I think I hit it I hit it just where you can’t see the the flag or the green. So I kind of when I got down to the ball, I had to walk around the corner to kind of, you know, be able to see. But uh yeah, just I to be honest, I was looking around and I was trying to pick out people I knew. and and and golfers who are trying to win the Open never get the chance to do that because they’re one shot clear. So
yeah, even Yeah. Like I talked to Harrington about it like you know when he won his first one in Carusi it was pure stress you know and and I got to I got to live it all and do it do it that way. It’s honestly like incredible. And I think look, obviously I’m coming back this year again and I’m going to try and do the same thing, but you know, who knows what it’s going to be like, but no matter what happens, I’ll always have that week. You know,
if you listen very carefully, you can almost hear Shane. Oh, Shane, that’s where I mean, you could obviously
it was wild, honestly. I do remember when we’re walking up close to the green. But yeah, I I actually was like looking like cuz the crowds were huge. I was looking trying to pick out people that I knew and I reckon I hit my T-shot to about here somewhere. What were you hitting in for your second?
Yeah, I hit seven iron.
Seven iron. All right. Okay.
Let’s Let’s try and find the exact spot.
I reckon I was about here. I reckon I was like here somewhere. That’s probably about right. Tommy was back. He hid in first
cuz I reckon I know that because when I when I was here and Bob put my bag down. We got the number and all. I walked around the corner to see where the flag was. And if you look at the exit, we used to exit at that tournament. The exit was out the back right of the green.
And I kind of looked and I could see all my family
and my daughter was wearing like a bright yellow jacket.
So you could see it from here.
I could see I honestly was the first thing I seen when I turned around. I could see my daughter wearing like a she’s she’s only Iris was only two and a half at the time. And I can see the bright yellow jacket. We still have that jacket. My other little one wears it now. And uh I started to well up like and I went back to Bo and Bo was like, “Mon, you need to just hit one more shot here.” And that was it.
Sorry, I’m kind of distracted by the fact that your second daughter has to hand me down.
I know. We actually we were going for a walk two days ago and uh my wife said, “Oh, get get Ivy’s coat.” And I went in and it was the yellow one. Uh yeah.
Yeah. But Ivy’s wearing a famous jacket. It’s like the green jacket or something like that.
So did you pick her out as the line then? No, I did hit it over that way, but yeah, I I came back then and and uh I hit my second shot. I went a little bit right, but uh
and then it was just like You knew it.
Yeah, it’s just trying to to be honest. It all happened so quick. I was just trying to soak it all in. Yeah,
I I’d give anything to be back here again for 10 minutes in that moment. You know,
I suppose that’s it. When you’re in the moment, it it it’s a bit of a a whirlwind, but you want to just say, “Can I just
You’d love to just press pause and stand and look around and take it all in, but it’s it’s hard. It all happens so quick.”
Okay. I mean, it was a touch, right? But it was a good second shot. So then then you’re you’re walking. And this is the
this is the walk that, you know, everybody wants, the most famous walk in golf. But again, we stress that for so many champions, it’s a stressful walk and they’ve got a job to do. So you you could enjoy every moment, every inch of it.
Yeah. And like Yeah. I remember walking up here and this is probably the crowd started to run behind you then. And
one of the famous old stampedes. You you were almost caught in it.
And then I I kind of got through that and then that’s where myself and Bo get over the bunkers and I gave him a big hug and we walked there’s a great picture of me and Bo like it’s one of my favorite pictures ever. I have my arm around them and you can see the crowd in the background like the Irish flags are flying and it’s yeah incredible. And I do remember walking up here and uh two of my really close friends were sitting up in the back of the grand stand and I spotted them. So stuff like that was
Yeah,
that’s amazing that you obviously you know your family and friends are back there, but you can spot other ones even in that huge crowd. You
Yeah, it’s uh Yeah, it’s kind of it it is it is a bit mad and it’s it’s like you say it’s the greatest walk in golf. I think you go through the rope about here maybe or something like that and then you’re out into the
probably. Yeah. And then
yeah, I don’t know. They probably stop the ropes here somewhere and then we get out. And that’s this is probably where the picture of me and BS from where I have my arm around them and um I’m sure there’s a lot of relief for him as well, you know, cuz it’s it’s stressful.
Yeah.
You know, you’re going into there’s a lot of expectation there. Uh you’re going in with a four shot lead. There was no there was no other option for me that day.
No.
But to win. I said to my coach that morning, I said if I it’s first or last for me today. Like it’s not, you know, I have no other option but to go out and win this tournament.
And it was a victory for the the whole of Ireland. You said lots of tricklers flying because in golf it’s like in rugby that you know
it’s one this was a victory on the island of Yeah.
of Ireland and so many fans had come up from the south as well. There was that feeling of, you know, sort of togetherness.
Yeah, absolutely. And like you said, golf is all won in Ireland and yeah, I feel like uh the whole country was cheering me on that day and honestly I felt every bit of it. Um I’m very excited to get back this year as well. It’s going to be very very special. But even you stand here, you stand here and look at this, it’s just it’s incredible. And if I take myself back six years to walking up here winning the open,
does it feel like an age ago? Does it? Or
Yeah, it does. Yeah. Yeah, it does feel like a long time ago.
A lot has happened since. But a lot has happened since. Yeah. Yeah. But then you come back and you see it like this and you must think, okay, you know why? Why not? Why not again? I mean, when you’re describing
everything Yeah.
just the desire to have that again.
Yeah, that’s the plan. And even, you know, I I gave myself a bit of a chance in Trun last year and uh yeah, I’d love to put my name on the CL jug again. But um like I say, I I try not to put too much pressure on myself cuz that’s the hardest thing is you want it so bad, you know, when you’ve tasted something like this, you just want it so bad to do it again. Um
well, let’s come to the point. So this is uh so I mean the pin was uh further back. This is a strange pin position today. They’re protecting the green like two paces on. So if you look at where that’s where we leave off the back of the where everybody was like you, you know, my mom, my dad, my wife, my daughter, Poric Harrington was there. GMAC was there. There’s actually a lot of people there. Most people that had a huge influence in my career was there.
Yeah.
At the back of that crane. So that was very cool. You were about over here, right? Is this right? Yeah. Sort of over here. And the pin was I’ll I’ll go and be the pin. And you stand where your
I think the pin was uh here.
Okay.
If you look at it’s probably there. I’d say that was it there somewhere.
I think pins are slightly thicker than me, but I’ll stand here. Yeah, we’ve got the hole. There we are.
I think uh my second shot came in. It bounced here. It kind of rolled up here and rolled back down to about here. I think
you weren’t far off holding the the birdie part. What I mean, at that point, it’s just
you’re trying to enjoy it, but you’re
you’re trying to get finished with a birdie.
It’s Yeah. And you just want to get it down, enjoy it. I mean, Tommy had just finished out, so it was just left to me and and there. And then Yeah. Like I rolled the put down to like a tap in. I didn’t even need to mark it and I tapped it in and that was that was it.
When you had that putt, I thought I thought you were going to mark it and just take a little
I didn’t know. You just don’t know what to do.
It’s just get it in the hole and get it over as big as you can.
Just thought you going to draw get put on the clock. Okay, I’ve got a few shots to spare. But you mentioned um
you know then obviously the the winning moment, but it was straight because you mentioned everybody was there in this little corner. I think it’s the same.
Yeah, it is. Yeah,
I think they brought back the same exact same build here because they got this little corner full of steps that you go out and it was straight to straight to the family.
Yeah. So my wife came out, my daughter, they came out onto the green here and then I was conscious. I had to go over Tommy remember was over there. when they go over and, you know, shake his hand. Uh, and then everybody was there, you know. Uh, yeah, like even like Gary Murphy was there who’s great friends of both and Gary played on tour for years and was very good to me when I was younger, you know, Boric GM, my coach Neil. Uh, obviously my mom and my dad, my sister, and my brother. And that’s the great thing about doing it the the way I did it up here, you know, like my my mom was able to get into she she never comes to big tournaments and she was able to get into the car that morning and drive up, you know, whereas if it was in Scotland or, you know, St. George’s maybe or something like she wouldn’t have went.
H so to have everybody just standing there that meant so much to me. It was it was incredible.
Yeah. Well, when you think about, you know, when you’re a youngster thinking about maybe winning the open,
I don’t suppose you can imagine a better thing for you than cuz, you know, when you were growing up, the open wasn’t that poor rush.
Yeah. Well, you never would have I I obvious like obviously when you’re a kid and you’re on the putting green, you’re always holding the foot to win the open. There’s never anything else. H when you’re growing up in Ireland, but we didn’t have the open in Port Rush at the time. So, you’re you even just to be coming here to play in the open in Port Rush was was uh very exciting. But to do what I did, look, it’s it’s absolute dream stuff. I I I genu genuinely I don’t think about it that much anymore. Uh but as we’re here now talking about it, you you do start to think like how no matter what I do for the rest of my career, it’s kind of like Yeah, I I’ll have that. You know what I mean?
Yeah. Have you seen the mural in turn?
I have. Yes. I actually saw it yesterday for the first time. Uh what you think?
Very strange. It’s very strange seeing yourself painted on a wall. I have to say uh and it hasn’t been vandalized yet, so I’m pretty happy with that.
Oh, no. Um the Well, I’ll sort that out tonight. So, um after the winning moment, then you’ve got everything to to do. You’ve got to have the moment out here. First of all, you’re checking your card. You’re going through all that. Um again, mind racing, but then you come out here announces that, you know, the champion golfer of the year comes out.
Yeah. You always I actually always remember like growing up and you always remember Peter Dawson on the alien green winner of the gold medal.
Good pressure.
Yeah. And uh yeah, the fact like you’re standing there and um you get called out and obviously it’s big presentation. You get to lift the clar yogurt. Yeah. Dream stuff. With a score of 269, the winner of the gold medal and the champion golfer of the year is Shane Larry. The thing you said back down the fair, we said, “No matter what else happens in your golfing career, you know, in later life, you’ll always This is
Yeah. And and I’m very ambitious and I I try to tell people this and I try to make sure that people don’t take this the wrong way, but like honestly no matter what I do for the rest of my career, I’ve got a CL jug sitting at home in my house in Dublin and I got to do it here in Port Rush. Like it’s I got to do something that you wouldn’t even dream about because it more often than not be a letown. You know what I mean? It’s it’s that big of a dream. So, uh, but I I obviously I’m I’m ambitious and I I want more in golf and I’d obviously love to do it again, but trying not to put too much pressure on myself.
Yeah, we always have 2019 and we’ll always have that mural.
Always have that mural. I say the people who own the house can’t wait till the open’s over to paint it over.
Oh, it’s it’s been great. I’m going to go and draw a mustache on it now. [Applause]