Shane Lowry didn’t want to make excuses, but Saturday was brutal.
After being slapped with a two-shot penalty on Friday at The Open, Lowry arrived back at his accommodations and tried his best to dust himself off. Unfortunately, he was awakened at 2:30 in the morning to a cramping stomach. A virus, which had been making its way through Lowry’s family, had finally gotten to him.
Not playing was never an option, though Lowry spent much of the morning at Royal Portrush stopping by bathroom after bathroom, just trying to throw up but to no success.
“It’s such a bad feeling,” Lowry said afterward. “I haven’t eaten today yet. I tried to get a protein drink down me after eight holes, and I felt like throwing up all over the place. Yeah, it’s been a tough day, but I’m not going to make excuses. I played poorly today and obviously had a bad finish.”
Lowry was 1 under after 13 holes before a triple at the par-4 14th. He’d then struggle in for a 3-over 74 and now sits ahead of just six names entering Sunday’s final round.
He has one more day here, but his chances of a repeat Open victory at Portrush are effectively over.
“The annoying thing for me today is I didn’t get to enjoy today as much as I would have liked,” Lowry added. “Saturday at The Open in your home country, I should enjoy it a lot more than I did…
“I wanted to do well so badly today and this week. I put so much into this week that, yeah, it’s hard to take.”
