It was a rollercoaster of a few days for Shane Lowry
Shane Lowry (Image: Justin Casterline/Getty Images)
Shane Lowry had a rollercoaster of a week at the PGA Championship at Aronimink Golf Club.
The Offaly man was just one shot off the lead after an opening round 68 left him on two-under-par, but some 24 hours later it looked like he wouldn’t make the cut after a second round 76 before he narrowly did.
A score of 70 on Saturday followed by a 68 on Sunday saw Lowry finish in a tie for 44th place, 11 shots behind winner Aaron Rai, and pocket €43,328 for his efforts.
The 39-year-old revealed his frustrations with the way the golf course was set up during the tournament.
He told the BBC: “I think it is a great golf course, but I think it has been set up poorly. I guess people sitting at home can say ‘well people are making birdies and shooting good scores’ but that’s always going to happen with the best players in the world.
“I was happy to hear Rory [McIlroy and Scottie [Scheffler’s] comments yesterday because it wasn’t just me feeling it out there.
“I feel like you when you see the best players in the world struggling from 10-feet, you know there is something wrong somewhere. I think they got it wrong on the first two days, it was certainly a little bit easier today (Saturday) and it looks like that was maybe a reaction to the first two days, which is not right either
“You want to play a golf course that gets harder as the week goes on especially in these major championships. You look at the field, [and it is] so bunched, maybe that’s the reason for the set up the way it is.”
Meanwhile, Lowry’s close friend Rory McIlroy pocketed €548,141 for finishing in a tie for seventh place, while Padraig Harrington took home a cheque for €240,000 after finishing in a tie for 18th.
Rai made history by becoming the first English golfer to win the PGA Championship since the inaugural champion, Jim Barnes, in 1919. He also became just the fifth European to win the tournament.
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