Shane Lowry threw his hat at it, literally as much as figuratively, as he walked the roped-off promenade between the back of the 18th green and the sanctuary of the recorder's hut.
The Offaly man possesses a generosity of spirit to match the largesse he bestowed on the kids clamouring for any manner of golfing paraphernalia. Half a dozen golf balls, a glove and finally his baseball cap were tossed towards the mini-gallery.
It’s been difficult to judge the wind at Royal County Down this week, and yesterday’s 40mph peak gusts provided a shellacking that drained the confidence.
Lowry, who signed for a closing 77 and a 10 over par total, didn’t dilute his feelings with platitudes. “To be honest I lost confidence [on the greens] earlier on in the week. The best putting round I had was probably with my wedge.
“I just found them very hard to read. I’m normally great on links greens. I don’t know what way they are or what the story is with them but I really struggled. Like I said on Saturday, no one has chopped off my hands in the last few days. I just lost a bit of confidence on greens. It’s not ideal to be putting in 30mph winds.
“Tee-to-green I think I was a good seven to eight out of 10, but on the greens only one or two. I thought I was in the tournament with 22 holes to go. I got a bad enough bounce on 15 [on Saturday] and ended up making bogey, and then doubled 17 and that was me out of the tournament.
“From there I was a bit deflated going out today [Sunday]. I knew if I shot a good score, level par, I could move up the leaderboard but I got off to a bad start, lost a ball on the third. It wasn’t ideal from there, a bit of a grind; the 18th couldn’t come quick enough in the end.”
Lowry paid tribute to Rory McIlroy for what he did in assembling a high quality field and the patience and perseverance of the galleries, lamenting only that the players didn’t give fans more birdies and eagles to cheer about.
“I always get great support in the Irish Open; family and friends coming up from home, and other Irish people as well. It is a great tournament to be part of.”
His plans now involve brother Alan, who he will support in the final two rounds at the East of Ireland Championship at Baltray today.
