IRELAND’S SHANE LOWRY surprised shoppers at a golf store after accidentally breaking his putter during the PGA CJ Cup.
Using his newly purchased putter, the 2019 Open champion fired a four-under par 67 on Friday to stand on seven-under 135, four off the lead after 36 holes at Congaree Golf Club at Ridgeland, South Carolina.
Rory McIlroy and Seamus Power are also going well, the former on nine-under.
“I putted well today,” Lowry said. “I wasn’t overly comfortable with the one I had. It’s something I’ll work on.”
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Lowry broke his putter during Thursday’s opening round and was forced to make his shopping trip as the course equipment trailers had departed the course on Wednesday.
“It just snapped in half, one of those freak things,” Lowry said.
That prompted him to drive an hour to Bluffton, South Carolina, to a PGA Tour Superstore and purchase a new putter for $229 (€232).
“My shopping experience was great,” Lowry said. “I bought another one just in case.”
Accidentally broke my putter on the 9th hole today…Hour drive to get a replacement. Thanks to the staff at the PGA Tour Superstore in Bluffton for their help. ☘️ pic.twitter.com/9hpfhDtg1J
— Shane Lowry (@ShaneLowryGolf) October 20, 2022
While the workers had been tipped off there was a major champion on the way to the store directly from the course, fellow shoppers were a bit startled to see a major winner among them.
“They were really nice and couldn’t have been any more helpful,” Lowry said of the staff. “The customers were doing a couple of double takes. It was fine. Never a dull moment.”
Lowry responded Friday with birdies on four of the first eight holes and holed another birdie putt from just inside 10 feet at 13 before his lone bogey at 15.
McIlroy is two shots off Kurt Kitayama and Jon Rahm’s shared lead; the Holywood man carding 67 today. He has dropped to fifth, on nine-under, after birdies on the fourth, 10th, 12th, 13th, 15th and 18th, and bogeys on holes six and eight.
And Power is just behind Lowry, inside the top-15 on six-under.
The Waterford man shot 69 today after another impressive round.
Elsewhere, Padraig Harrington is in the mix on the Champions Tour, three shots off the lead at the Dominion Energy Charity Classic.
The Dubliner’s opening round 68 has him four-under and tied for sixth. USA’s Jerry Kelly leads the field in Richmond, Virginia. You can view the leaderboard here.
And Leona Maguire and Stephanie Meadow are both well off the pace at the LPGA BMW Ladies Championship, after rounds of 72 and 71 respectively. Maguire is even-par, and Meadow is one over. Andrea Lee of USA tops the leaderboard.
