Lowry crashes out as Power keeps Dell Match Play hopes alive with dogged win
Seamus Power. Picture USGA
Shane Lowry crashed out at the round-robin stage for the seventh year in a row as Seamus Power kept his hopes alive of making the last 16 in the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play.
As the Offaly man lost 4&3 to 50th seed Mackenzie Hughes of Canada, who raced five-up through seven holes at Austin Country Club, Power birdied the 18th to beat Hughes’ compatriot Adam Hadwin 1-up in a rollercoaster affair.
Lowry now plays Jordan Spieth, and he will have a chance to build some much-needed confidence against the three-time Major winner in his last start before the Masters.
Spieth will also be desperate to win after making unforced errors at 13th and 14th that allowed rookie Taylor Montgomery to turn their match around and beat him 2&1 to top the group with two wins.
The defeat for Spieth means Hughes controls his destiny, as a win over Montgomery today would give him a playoff chance.
Power may also need a playoff to progress after just three holes were halved in a fierce battle with Hadwin that went the distance.
The Tooraneena man was two-up after seven holes, but while he lost four of the next five holes and was still one down with three to play, he finished birdie-par-birdie, rolling in a four-footer at the 18th for the win.
He now faces Sam Burns, who beat Adam Scott, meaning a three-way playoff on two points could be on the cards should Power beat Burns and Scott hand Hadwin his third defeat.
"Yeah, obviously I needed that one to stay in it," Power said. "I'm pretty sure Sam won right there in front of us so I knew I had to win that hole, so it was nice to sneak it in. Yeah, a lot of work to do tomorrow. Obviously Sam is a great player, so looking forward to the challenge."
Meanwhile, defending champion Leona Maguire opened with a two-under 70 in the LPGA Drive On Championship to trail clubhouse leader Hsu Wei-ling of Taiwan by four strokes at Superstition Mountain in Arizona.
At the DP World Tour’s Jonsson Workwear Open in South Africa, a four-under 68 left Holywood rookie Tom McKibbin tied 29th, four strokes behind home players Darren Fichardt and Martin Vorster at The Club at Steyn City.
On the Challenge Tour, Niall Kearney raced to the turn in six-under 30 before a back nine of 38 forced him to settle for a 68 on his return to action in the Duncan Taylor Black Bull Challenge in India.
He’s tied for 12th with Portmarnock’s Conor Purcell on four-under in Bangalore, five strokes behind Spain’s Nacho Elvira.
Amateur Robert Moran was tied 43rd after a 70 with Dermot McElroy and John Murphy 66th after 71s with Ruaidhri McGee’s 75, leaving him 126th.
Meanwhile, Ryder Cup legend Paul McGinley has confirmed he’ll compete at Seapoint Golf Links in the 2023 Irish Legends from June 23-25.
