Ireland’s Shane Lowry posted the best round of his career at the perfect time Saturday at Royal Portrush, carding a bogey-free round of 63 to take a four-shot advantage into the final round.
Lowry has one WGC victory to his name but has never won a major – and came to Northern Ireland having missed the last four cuts at the Open Championship.
Lowry held a share of the lead after 36 holes, and was nearly flawless on moving day to set up a Sunday duel with Tommy Fleetwood. Lowry birdied six of his last 10 holes, including three consecutive birdies on holes 15, 16 and 17.
Lowry barely missed a birdie bomb at the final hole that would have tied the record for the lowest score in Open history at 62.
Lowry will play in the final group on Sunday with Tommy Fleetwood – and while Lowry has a sizable advantage, weather could cause chaos in the final round. Sunday’s tee times at Royal Portrush have been moved up with the threat of severe weather moving in Sunday evening. The final group will tee off at 8:47 a.m. ET.
Via TheOpen:
“The most recent outlook from the Met Office anticipates ‘persistent and occasionally heavy rain’ throughout the afternoon and evening. Winds are expected to gust up to 30mpg, with a 40 percent risk of gusts up to 35mph after 4 p.m. local (11 a.m. ET).”
