GOLF MADRID OPEN: SHANE LOWRY finally tapped into the sort of form that delivered him the Irish Open title as the Clara professional fired an imperious second round 63 at the €1.5million Madrid Masters and was joined at the business end of proceedings by Gary Murphy.
Since his fairytale win as an amateur at Baltray in May, Lowry’s journey into the paid ranks has been something of a slow burner, but there were no such issues at the Centro Nacional de Golf venue yesterday as he carded a flawless nine-under-par round – the equal lowest of the day.
A birdie at the opening hole was quickly followed by three on the spin from the fourth before another came at the eighth as he turned in 31.
Four further birdies were recorded on the inward half and yet the 22-year-old still felt he left shots out on the course.
“The funny thing is, I actually played better than my 63,” said Lowry after his round.
“I played as well in this round as I did in my first round but just managed to hole more putts.”
“I am feeling really good going into the weekend. To be where I am after two rounds and knowing I have better in me is very encouraging. The conditions were perfect, the course was very scoreable and overall it suits my game,” added Lowry, who at 10-under was three shots off the joint lead held home favourite Sergio Garcia and Scotland’s David Drysdale.
Lowry’s ability to shoot low has already been in evidence on the Friday of the Irish Open when he shot 62 to move into contention and yesterday’s round has been by far the best competitive round since then.
Life on tour has been a steep learning curve after making the adjustment from being Ireland’s top amateur to becoming a successful touring professional. In 12 professional events since Baltray Lowry has missed the cut in six and also failed to qualify for the British Open at Turnberry.
After gifting Robert Rock the winner’s cheque at the Irish Open he has amassed just €76,770 in prize money and is 182nd on the money list but is confident he can compete at this level.
“It’s nice to be back in contention at a tournament. I know that I can perform at this level, and I just want to prove that to myself on the course,” added Lowry, who still has an enviable two-year exemption to learn the trade.
As the highest ranked player in the field it comes as little surprise to find Garcia top of the pile as he competes on home soil.
The world number eight added a second round 67 to his opening 64 and was joined in the lead by Drysdale, whose 65 included an eagle three at the 18th after he made bogey on 17.
As Garcia goes in search of his first win of the year, the 29-year-old was just as excited about the possibility of winning a gold medal at the Olympics after yesterday’s announcement that golf would be included at the Games from 2016.
“If I stay in shape I probably have three chances,” said Garcia.
“I’m thrilled and excited about the possibility. There’s still a long way to go, but I’m going to try to stay healthy.
“This is a very special day. We’ve been fighting for a year now to get it in and it feels good. It’s going to be an amazing experience for all of us.
“We have the majors and the Ryder Cup, but winning an Olympic gold medal would be awesome – and staying at the Olympic village would be a great experience,” added the Spaniard.
It was also a great day for Murphy after an eight birdie round of 65 gave the 36-year-old a share of third on 12-under alongside Italy’s big-hitting Emanuele Canonica (65) and England’s Ross McGowan (66).
Peter Lawrie was also well-placed on eight-under after a 67, while a trio of Irishmen, Gareth Maybin (68), Michael Hoey (69) and Damien McGrane (71), were all safely into the weekend on six-under. The news wasn’t good for Darren Clarke as he went into freefall with a disappointing 76 to undo all the good work of his opening 69.
At one-over he missed the cut by five shots.
