Lowry thrilled "bottle" remains intact as he lays Oakmont hoodoo to rest
Shane Lowry shakes hands with Andrew Landry at the end of their round during the final round of the 2016 U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club in Oakmont, Pa. on Sunday, June 19, 2016. (Copyright USGA/Joel Kowsky)
Shane Lowry was thrilled with the "bottle" he showed as he snatched the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship from Richard Sterne and put his Oakmont nightmare behind him with a clutch performance down the stretch.
Four clear in that 2016 US Open, he shot 76 on the final day to finish second and took more than two years to recover.
He admitted that thoughts of Pittsburgh were still on his mind before the start and that another big let down loomed large as he slipped four shots behind the South African with just seven holes to go.
"Yeah, it did," he said of thoughts of that loss to Dustin Johnson. "And look, I slept okay last night, but it was a little bit nervy this morning, breakfast and lunch didn't go down as well as it has been the last few days.
"But the one thing I got from Oakmont is I laid down and I didn't show any fight or bottle there and I did that today.”
Shane Lowry in Abi Dhabi. Picture: Getty Images
Lowry was being harsh on himself there considering he was leading a major for the first time, playing with another novice in Andrew Landry and that Johnson played lights out golf to get over the line.
He putted poorly that afternoon but the blade behaved in Abu Dhabi and he showed he has courage to burn if he gets half a chance.
"I felt after the 11th hole, I was getting myself in the same situation that I got myself in Oakmont and I genuinely thought that,” he admitted. “But I kind of had a quick word with myself and told myself that, you know, just kick on now and just see what I can do for the next six or seven holes."
While his clutch three-wood to the heart of the 18th set up a winning birdie, it was his pitch and putt par at the 17th that reminded him why he practised his short game for long hours as a kid at Esker Hills in Co Offaly.
"Well, it arguably won me the tournament in a way," he said of the pitch and the 12 footer that toppled in the side door. "Because I think going down the last one behind, we hit two great tee shots down the last. It wasn't that easy of a tee shot today.
"I knew Richard only had a five-wood in his bag and had no three-wood. He would have had 285 yards to the flag, so I knew he couldn't really get it there and it was a perfect three-wood for me.
"You know, I knew I had a little bit of an advantage there but obviously the up-and-down on 17 was huge. The chip was pretty good, but I hit a great putt and it actually, six feet out, I thought, this is definitely in. Then it just started to wiggle left and it just caught the left edge.
"I was very happy, and I think momentum-wise, he probably had a bit of a thought that I might miss that and he would be one ahead playing the last. I think going in, it was in my court going down 18."
It was a real matchplay moment and just the kind of performance European captain Pádraig Harrington will be looking for from his troops at Whistling Straits in 2020.
"I still have a goal in my head I'm working towards every day and just because I won this doesn't mean I can take my foot off the gas," he said of his Ryder Cup ambitions.
"It's a great stepping stone, no doubt because I'm back in the big tournaments now for the foreseeable future and hopefully I can kick on from here and move back up the World Rankings where I feel like I really belong."
