The Republic of Ireland team had a major visitor when Open hero Shane Lowry visited their camp on Monday.
Offaly man Lowry captured the hearts of the nation when he won the Open Championship at Portrush this summer.
The 32-year-old deservedly enjoyed his celebrations after winning his first major championship with the Claret Jug never far from his side.
And Mick McCarthy will hope that Lowry, who showed off the Claret Jug to the Irish team, will inspire them ahead of their crunch Euro 2020 qualifier against Switzerland on Thursday.
The golfer is a huge sports fans and he posed for pictures and chatted with the players as they gear up for the big match.
Lowry will be in back in action for the first time in Europe when he tees it up at Wentworth for the BMW PGA Championship later this month.
“The BMW PGA Championship is one of my favourite events,” Lowry told the European Tour.
“When I first played at Wentworth in 2010, I remember I couldn’t believe how big it was – it felt like playing a Major. I’ve had decent success there and I love the whole area.
“It’s a great place, the fans are very knowledgeable, we get to stay in nice places nearby. It’s one of my favourite weeks of the year, so to be able to go back there as Open Champion – my first time playing back in Europe – that is going to be unbelievable.
“It’s a golf course which I’ve always loved, before and after the changes they made. If I go there with my game in decent shape, I know I can perform at Wentworth and I feel like it’s a tournament I can do well in, so hopefully I can put in another good performance there this year.
“Wentworth is obviously the start of Ryder Cup qualification too and it’s been no secret that is now my main goal for the next 14 months or so. The fact that Padraig (Harrington) is captain, it would be very special to play under him because I’m very good friends with him. Hopefully I can play well, pick up some Ryder Cup points and give it a good run next year.”
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