SHANE LOWRY HAS suggested that the best years of his career remain ahead as he closes in on his dream of playing Ryder Cup golf this year.
The Offaly golfer has played consistently in the last two months on the PGA tour, finishing eighth at the Players Championship, in a tie for ninth at the RBC Heritage and a tie for 11th at the Houston Open. And he feels more is about to come.
“For me 2019 was a huge year; obviously I won the Open but I won twice that year, I’d never done that before, so it was the best year of my career by far,” Lowry said in an interview with RTÉ’s Greg Allen.
“In contrast, 2020 was a serious letdown. I’m very driven, more so than I have ever been before. I really want to do a lot in this game and really feel I have got the ability to do a lot and hopefully to do it pretty soon.
“I love nothing more than to get messages from people back home, especially now in these awful times, that we are cheering people up by sitting in, watching me (contend) on a Sunday night.
Great chat @gregallenRTE https://t.co/8naqx7PNkB
— Shane Lowry (@ShaneLowryGolf) April 24, 2021
“I’d like to have a couple of better finishes under my belt this season but if I look at my last run of tournaments – I’ve played seven out of eight weeks; I had a nice week at The Players Championship; I felt I was in contention at the Honda (Classic); I went to the Masters this year with a lot of confidence.
“I really feel I played good enough golf to have a chance on Saturday or Sunday so I was really disappointed coming away from a Major. I made a few mistakes here or there; overall I was happy with how I performed, disappointed (not to contend for a green jacket). Mentally I probably wasn’t there for the week but the rest of my game was there to really have a good week.
“I have never been one to talk myself up too much but I do feel good about my game at the minute and I do feel that I keep doing what I am doing then I will reach my goals this year.”
The next big item on Lowry’s agenda is the PGA Championship at Kiawah Island.
“I am only playing once between now and the PGA and hopefully I can go in there with a bit of confidence,” he told RTÉ’s Saturday Sport radio programme.
After that comes the Irish Open (hopefully) at Mount Juliet. Then, after two years as defending Open champion, he’ll finally get the opportunity to defend his crown at Royal St George’s.
“Hopefully there will some sort of a crowd there and I will get the chance to defend an Open championship in a really great venue. I feel in a great place mentally and physically with my game.
“I love big tournaments, love the buzz around it, I feel like now, at 34, the next six, seven years are going to be crucial for my whole career and I feel that I need to do whatever I can now in that timeframe to get the best out of my whole career.”
