Lowry blown off course in Irish Amateur Open
Shane Lowry slammed conditions as a "joke" as gale force winds wreaked havoc in the Irish Amateur Open at Royal Dublin.
Royal DublinWinds gusting over 40 mph forced an 80-minute suspension from 8.40 am as first round scores soared into the 90s at the fabled Dollymount track.
After slumping a seven over par 79, Walker Cup hope Lowry rapped: “It's a bit of a joke out there. It’s not really golf.
“You can't hole putts and you are just happy to two putt from 10 feet or happy just to hole a two footer.
“I thought there should have been a couple more tees up and it was borderline playable but at least I haven’t blown myself out of it.”
Lowry finished just five shots behind clubhouse leader Farren Keenan of England, who had two birdies and four bogeys in a brilliant 74.
But that left him just one shot clear at the top as Dubliners James Fox and Niall Kearney and Finn Miro Veijalainen, who defied savage conditions to hit three over 75s
Royal Dublin man Kearney battled superbly to fire one birdie and four bogeys on a day when the 14 Walker Cup squad members in the field averaged 79.2.
A member of the panel battling for 10 spots on the side that will take on the US at Merion in September, Kearney beamed: “I am very satisfied. I was two-over after five holes and finished three over.
“It was seriously wild but it was playable, even though there were a lot of drivers off the deck on the back nine into some of the par fours.
"Looking at the scoreboard, it looks like they are going to run out of 8s!”
Irish Amateur Open Championship (sponsored by AIB), Royal Dublin, Par 72
First round:
74: F Keenan (England)
75: J Fox (Portmarnock), N Kearney (The Royal Dublin), M Veijalainen (Finland)
76: W Booth (Scotland), P Betty (Scotland)
77: R McCarthy (The Island), R Leonard (Banbridge), T Hakula (Finland), G Dear (Scotland)
78: B Anderson (Co. Sligo), S Moloney (Castletroy), D Whitnell (England), P Westermann (Germany), D Lernihan (Castle), P Cutler (Portstewart), J Monaghan (The Island), N Grant (Knock), R Laino (England), A Runcie (Wales), S Hutsby (England)
79: L Brady (The Royal Dublin), D Ruddy (Thurles), K McNicoll (Scotland), S Lowry (Esker Hills), M Cunningham (Scotland), T Pulkkanen (Finland), P Purdy (Shandon Park), M Thistleton (England), M Bookless (Scotland), R Durnin (Laytown & Bettystown), R Prophet (England), B Walton (The Island), R McNamara (Headfort)
80: R Kellett (Scotland), H Satama (Finland), A Dunbar (Rathmore), G Paterson (Scotland), S Borrowman (Scotland), T Beaumont (England), R Cannon (Laytown & Bettystown), J McGinn (Laytown & Bettystown), M Durcan (Co. Sligo), J Ross (Scotland), G Dillon (The Heath), S Hodgson (England), A Hogan (Newlands)
81: S McEwan (Scotland), P Croonquist (USA), M Rivard (Canada), E Arthurs (Forrest Little), M Buggy (Castlecomer), T O' Flynn (Fota Island), C Curley (Newlands), C Doran (Banbridge), L Goddard (England)
82: C Drumm (Rosslare), J Carlota (Portugal), S Einhaus (Germany), G McDermott (Co. Sligo), C Wilson (USA), P Shields (Scotland), I Brennan (Greenore), C Durnian (England), T Dogil (Germany), M Hammond (Moyola Park), G McGrane (The Royal Dublin), J Morris (Rosslare), L Lennox (Moyola Park), D Morgan (Mullingar), P McLean (Scotland), M Glauert (Germany), S Brown (England), G McGee (Malone), D Murphy (Portarlington), B Reiter (Austria), G Lawlor (Newbridge)
83: C O'Malley (Westport), C Thomson (Scotland), D O'Donovan (Muskerry), R Bridges (Stackstown), A Kirstein (Germany), C Robb (Scotland), D Coyle (Co. Louth), J Haglund (Finland), O Mikkola (Finland)
84: P Dunne (Greystones), P Murray (Limerick), T McGowan (Strandhill), S Binning (Scotland), G Yates (Scotland), H Bacher (Austria), K McDonagh (Athlone), T Fay (Rush)
85: M Brett (Portmarnock), M Violas (Portugal), P Figueiredo (Portugal), M Downes (England), P O'Hara (Scotland), E Kennedy (England)
86: R McGee (Ireland), O Sharpe (England), B Campbell (Malone), S Wolters (Germany), T Rodrigues (Portugal), M Reardon (USA), G O'Connor-Brooks (USA)
87: J Jóia (Portugal), K Samooja (Finland)
88: J Hendrick (Scotland), A Llorente (Colombia), G Dunne (Seapoint), R Cronheim (USA), A Dooley (Glasson)
89: K Nicol (Scotland), M Aurnhammer (Germany), F Illouz (France)
90: G Perne (Slovenia), C Schroder (Germany)
91: N Woods (East Clare)