Lowry seeks momentum on moving day
The 16th at TPC Scottsdale
Shane Lowry will be looking to give his season some momentum on moving day in the Waste Management Phoenix Open.
The Clara man (30) missed the cut in San Diego last week, and after making it on the mark in Arizona on Friday night, he'll be keen to make a move up the leaderboard at TPC Scottsdale today.
He started well in round two but fizzled out on the back nine and posted a one-under 71 to finish the day nine shots behind Rickie Fowler and Bryson DeChambeau on one-under par.
Lowry had 31 putts in his 71 and while he didn't hit the ball close, it was his driving that cost him on the back nine.
He made an eight-footer for par at the second after going from a fairway bunker to a greenside bunker but made a superb birdie at the sixth, firing a 143-yard approach from another fairway bunker to 11 feet.
He then made a seven-footer for par at the 193-yard par-three seventh before rattling home a 25-footer for a two at the 164-yard 12th to move into the top 25 on three-under-par
But just when he looked to have some momentum, he drove into a hazard and bogeyed the par-five 13th, then dropped another shot at the tough, 488-yard 14th following another miss to the right from the tee.
Another missed fairway at the par-five 15th forced him to lay up and settle for a two-putt par, and while he hit a good shot to 12 feet at the raucous 16th and had a 13 footer at the driveable 17th, he missed both birdie putts.
To add to his frustration, he missed out on winning an SUV awarded to the player with the lowest combined distance from the pin at the par-three 16th over the first two days.
The PGA Tour initially believed Lowry had won, not only the $52,000 Ford Expedition but another car to be donated to the charity of his choice.
But they eventually worked out that he had lost out to Ben Silverman by three inches to the Canadian, who hit shots to 9'4" and 6'4" for 15'8" to Lowry's 15'11" (4 feet 2 inches and 11 feet 9 inches).
Jordan Spieth was even more frustrated as he missed his first cut for eight months after a heckler put him off on his final hole — the second time he was heckled in as many days.
The world number three three-putted three times over the two days and his mood wasn't helped by the attentions of heckler on his final hole of the day — the ninth — who screamed: “Jordan, I’ve got two beers on this!” as he faced a make-or-break 30 footer for birdie to make the cut.
Predictably, Spieth left his putt short and glared back at the fan, who was later ejected by security, before making a tight-lipped exit from TPC Scottsdale.
The Texan (24) was understandably upset with himself as he took 32 putts in a 70 as Fowler and DeChambeau shot 66s for the second day running to lead by a shot on 10-under par from Daniel Berger and Chez Reavie.
