In-form Lowry heads for rain-soaked Oakmont as McDowell banks $1.87 million LIV payday
Graeme McDowell of Smash GC hits his shot on the 16th during the final round of LIV Golf Virginia at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club. Photo by Mateo Villalba/LIV Golf
Not even the searing heat from Shane Lowry's blistering start to the final round of the RBC Canadian Open will dry out Oakmont for this week's US Open test.
At least that's the view from those who braved the rain at the storied Pittsburgh venue yesterday as Lowry, four off the lead overnight, started eagle-birdie-birdie-birdie on TPC Toronto's North Course at Osprey Valley to surge into the lead before fading to tied 13th after a three-under 67.
That he started with 12 players ahead of him was always going to be a challenge for the Offaly man, and after playing his first four holes in five-under, it was asking a bit too much to expect him to keep up that kind of pace.
A bogey at the ninth, where he made his first three-putt of the week, saw him fall into a five-way tie for the lead.
As it turned out, none of the early challengers walked away with the title, not even Sam Burns, who carded an eight-under 62 to set the clubhouse target at 18-under.
The American lost in a playoff to the powerful Kiwi Ryan Fox, who birdied the par-five 18th the fourth time around to win his second PGA Tour title just four weeks after winning his first in sudden death at the Myrtle Beach Classic.
Joint leader overnight with Matteo Manassero, Fox shot 66 to tie with Burns on 18-under as Lowry played the back nine in one over, following a birdie at the 15th with bogeys at the 16th and 17th.
The good news is that the Clara man left Toronto having carded four rounds in the sixties — 64, 68, 68 and 67 — to finish tied for 13th on 13-under.
It was his eighth top-20 finish in his last 13 starts, and after finishing the week ranked third for strokes gained approach, he will arrive in Oakmont with the iron play required to win a US Open.
That he was 50th for driving accuracy will be a minor concern, but with the Oakmont area emerging from the wettest May since 1871, according to Geoff Shackelford at The Quadrilateral, the fairways will be playing wider than usual.
The course is in pristine condition despite receiving nearly two inches of rain since last Thursday.
It was raining on Sunday evening, and the USGA's meteorologists are expecting rain showers (or possibly a rainstorm) at around 5 pm local time today.
At the time of writing, neither Lowry nor Rory McIlroy were among the 96 players booked in for practice rounds today.
However, that's likely to change before the day is done, as private jets touch down for the US Open on a classic course, where all four championship days are sold out.
There are ten former US Open champions in the field - McIlroy, Wyndham Clark, current holder Bryson DeChambeau, Matt Fitzpatrick, Lucas Glover, Dustin Johnson (the 2016 champion at Oakmont), Brooks Koepka, Jon Rahm, Justin Rose, and Jordan Spieth.
Alas for Irish fans, 2010 champion Graeme McDowell (45) failed to come through Final Qualifying for Oakmont last week.
But he showed signs at the weather-affected LIV Golf Virginia event yesterday that he might just have the game to qualify for The Open at Royal Portrush when he tees it up at Royal Cinque Ports in Final Qualifying on June 23.
The Portrush native notched his first podium finish since moving to LIV Golf in 2021 when he closed with a bogey-free, five-under 66 yesterday to tie for second, a shot behind Joaquin Niemann at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club and win $1,875,000.
"Like I say, this is what I expect of myself," McDowell said. "I'm very proud of what I'm doing out here and the way I've committed myself to continuing to work, continuing to grind, and sometimes you need a little something back just to remind you that you've still got something left in the tank.
"I'm going to use this as momentum to take forward to Dallas and then on to the British Open qualifier."
As he said in his press conference before the tournament, getting to Royal Portrush next month is a massive goal.
"With The Open going back to Royal Portrush this year, it's been a big focus," he said last week.
"It was a dream come true to be there in '19. The RBC Canadian Open is this week. I qualified via the RBC Canadian Open in '19 to get into The Open. Obviously, I'll go to Cinque Ports, and it will be a big day for me.
"I'm excited. It will certainly be bittersweet to not be there, but I'll definitely be giving it my full attention and be trying hard.
"It would be amazing. With everything that Rory's done this year, with Shane being the defending champion, to go back to Portrush, it's going to be a special week. It goes without saying that I'd love to be a part of it."
As McDowell packed for home, 14 LIV Golf colleagues headed for Pittsburgh with high hopes, none more so than Niemann, and defending champion DeChambeau, who tied for fourth with 55-year-old Phil Mickelson.
The left-hander is the only man in the field who can complete the career grand slam this week in an event where he has finished second no fewer than six times.
