Lowry puts it all together in India
Shane Lowry rolled in eight birdies in a mesmerising all round performance to fire a bogey-free 64 to grab the first round lead the DP World India Championship,
Seeking his first individual win for more than three years,Europe’s Ryder Cup hero turned in two-under after a tight and tricky Delhi Golf Club before running the tables in an extrordinary putting display on the back nine
With the magic of Bethpage Black still tingling in his fingers, he brushed in five birdie consecutive putts of between eight and 12 feet from the 11th before knocking in a four footer at the 18th to come home in 3 and lead by a shot from Japan’s. Keita Nakajima.
“I feel like this type of golf course suits me,” said Lowry, who missed just five fairways and only one green alongside Ryder Cup teammate Tommy Fleetwood and captain Luke Donald.
“I spend half the year moaning about golf courses that are too wide, so when I get to somewhere like here, I need to take advantage of that. And I did that today and hopefully I can keep doing that for the rest of the week.”
Lowry was thrilled to convert his ball striking brilliance into birdies on a day when Rory McIlroy shot a three-under 69 despite opting to leave his driver out of the bag, and Conor Purcell had to eagle the last to post a 74.
“I putted nicely today,” Lowry said. “I played nice. Gave myself a lot of chances and then on the back nine, it was pretty nice. It because a really nice group, playing with Luke and Tommy, we all had a great time and we all played pretty good. I just rolled off a few more birdies than they did on the back nine.
“You know, 64 is a really nice score. It's not that hard when you are out there but when you start missing fairways it becomes quite tricky. Happy with that.”
The New Delhi traffic was a distraction but no impediment to a man who had to put up with constant abuse in New York.
“We could hear the horns from the road,” he said. “It was not as off-putting as the Bethpage crowd.”
While Purcell needs a top five finish to extend his season for another week as he battles to keep his card, a triple bogey seven at the 13th did most of the damage before he recovered by rolling in a 12 footer for a closing eagle.
McIlroy opted for a conservative approach from the tee and fired six birdies in a 69 that left him joint 17th as he bids to stretch his lead at the top of the Race to Dubai in his quest for a seventh Harry Vardon Trophy.
“Dog (the driver) was out of the bag, probably asleep in the locker,” he joked. “You just have to get the ball in the fairway.”
At the penultimate HotelPlanner Tour event of the season, the Hangzhou Open in China, Max Kennedy opened with a two-under 70 to lie seven strokes behind leader Victor Pastor.
The Royal Dublin man sits in the hot seat at 45th in the rankings with only the top 45 qualifying for the season-ending Rolex Grand Final while Galway’s Liam Nolan, who is 37th in the standings, made six birdies in a rollercoaster 72 to sit just outside the projected cut line.
In the LPGA’s BMW Ladies Championship at Pine Beach Golf Links, Leona Maguire was 42nd, eight shots behind Sei Young Kim after opening with a two-under 70.
