“I think what Jon said about growing the game and stuff, that’s obviously what they have to say,” Lowry said, according to the Irish Independent, at a press conference this week promoting next year’s Amgen Irish Open on the DP World Tour. “They’ve signed on the dotted line. They’ve been told by the communications team that this is what you say when you’re asked this and you have no other choice really because they own you now.

“I don’t know if it’s been damaging, but people who have spent their hard-earned money going out to join a golf club and buy golf clubs and play golf for the weekend, it’s tough for them to listen to the guy who’s already worth whatever say he has to do this to put food on the table for his wife and kids.”

Lowry is one of many who hopes that the standoff between the PGA Tour, LIV Golf and the DP World Tour will come to a halt sometime soon as the disruption caused by LIV has put golf in a “funny place.” He didn’t go so far as to attack executives at the PGA Tour, à la Viktor Hovland, but the 2019 Open champ is undoubtedly exhausted by the never-ending news cycle.

“Do I think they’ve been amazing? No, probably not,” Lowry said. “But I’m not going to criticise them because I think they couldn’t foresee this coming. It was something that just happened. I don’t really know.

“A lot of players have a lot of opinions on the leadership of the tour. But I don’t consider myself clever enough to be able to comment on running a billion-dollar organisation.”

Lowry echoed those comments while speaking with Irish sports website Balls.ie, where it was obvious his disappointment that he won’t get to tee off against Rahm until the Masters. His fellow pros hopping around has forced him to become a bit more “selfish” as well.

“Because it’s been going on for so long now, at the start it was dispiriting, but now, I’ve talked about this a lot with my team, you just have to worry about yourself,” Lowry told the website. “You just have to become that selfish golfer who picks their schedule and wants to play and win the best tournaments in the world. The best tournaments in my mind are Riviera, Bay Hill, the Players, and then leading up to the Masters. They are the tournaments I want to win.”

With all that said, Lowry is fanatical when it comes to the Ryder Cup, and he doesn’t see a reason for Team Europe to lose Rahm just because of his recent about-face. When it comes down to it, Lowry wants to win (and celebrate) the biennial event, and having Rahm on the team is certainly better than not having him.

Rory McIlroy recently called for a rules change to insure the Spaniard could make Team Europe’s Bethpage squad in 2025, but Lowry seemed confident that it won’t need to come down to that.

“The reason they [Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter, Lee Westwood] couldn’t play Ryder Cup this year was because they resigned their [DP World Tour] membership,” Lowry said Irish Open press conference. “There were certain players that would have been able to make the team if they played good enough, but they just didn’t. I am sure Rahmbo can play well enough to make the team, so if he doesn’t resign his membership, he can still make the team.”

Image: Andrew Redington

The post “They own you now”: Shane Lowry not surprised by Jon Rahm’s LIV jump, still wants him at Bethpage Ryder Cup appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

Who's the most famous person in your contacts, excluding golfers?

? @StephenCurry30
? @LandoNorris
@esmuellert_
? @NiallOfficial
? @MichaelJordaan#DPWTC | #RolexSeries pic.twitter.com/rPD6eAVU7A

— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) November 15, 2023

Whoever’s behind the DP World Tour’s social media account made sure to say EXCLUDING GOLFERS and we’re thrilled he did because this led to some damn good responses.

After a “wee look” through their phones, the pros came up with some big names such as soccer pros Franz Beckenbauer and Thomas Müller, basketball/golf legend Steph Curry, cricketer Shane Warne and musicians like Lewis Capaldi and Niall Horan.

Perhaps this is an American perspective, but Shane Lowry won the contest when he name-dropped Michael Jordan. The two have combined for seven championships (six NBA titles and one Open Championship), and we’d love nothing more than to know what the two of them text about. We know that MJ is a Ryder Cup obsessive, so perhaps some trash talk between the two sides?

No matter what, we hope Lowry has a good grip on his phone, or Jordan may get a text or two from randos asking him if he wants to join some unknown golf foursomes.

Image: Ramsey Cardy

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Things have changed though. Gone are the days when Seve Ballesteros would play in—and win—the 1980 Masters only because he had finished in the top-one at the previous year’s Open Championship. Since then, a gradual relaxation of previously exclusionary rules has seen any number of the Spaniard’s fellow-Europeans make the transition from the now DP World Tour to the PGA Tour.

Next year, however, that long-established trend will take on a different hue. Come Sunday evening and the conclusion of the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai, 10 members of the Old World circuit will have their PGA Tour cards for 2024, courtesy of their performances in the season just ended.

It will be, for most if not all, a time of dramatic change. Lifestyles will be very different, both socially and culturally, especially for the continental Europeans. While all will have played in America before, staying for long periods of time is not quite the same as popping in and out.

“It will be an eye-opener for them,” says Matt Wallace, the Englishman having joined the PGA Tour in 2020 and since earning just shy of $6 million along with a title at this year’s Corales Puntacana Championship. “They will have to get used to being in the one country for just about the whole year. So culturally it is an adjustment, although travel is easier. The courses are amazing. Inside the ropes is great. Outside the ropes is just different. You can eat in the same spots every week. The depth in the field every week makes it really hard. Strong players lose their cards on the PGA Tour. And guys who just keep their cards would win multiple times over here.

“It’s tough,” continues Wallace, who in matching the DP World Tour record for consecutive birdie in a round on Saturday holds a one-shot lead at the DP World Tour season finale with one round to play. “But it does make you play better. The rough is thicker. The fairways are tighter. You can’t go at certain flags because the short side is so penal. Chipping and putting is easier on the DP World Tour. But playing in the States does sharpen your game. I always like coming back home. I feel like I’m really sharp when I arrive even if I haven’t had great results.”

Three-time DP World Tour champion Lucas Herbert is another who has made the step up from Europe to America. Like Wallace, Herbert has a lone PGA Tour win, the 2021 Butterfield Bermuda Championship, and has amassed over $4 million in prize money. Along the way, the 27-year-old Australian has noticed a few significant differences in life on either side of the Atlantic.

“The new lads will find that it is possible to have a friendly practice round with a couple of Americans on Tuesday, then, two days later, those same two guys will walk straight past,” says Herbert with a smile. “The level of camaraderie they know so well in Europe just isn’t there in America. It’s just a different beast. And it’s harder. I’ve shot over par only once in my last five events and been around 30th nearly every week. Shoot two under par on Saturday and you move back 20 spots. That is what they are going to run into on the PGA Tour. Ball-striking is emphasized much more over there. There are spots around greens from where you just can’t save par. In short, the courses are just harder.”

On that, legendary swing coach, Pete Cowen, is quick to agree.

“They will have to prepare themselves for missing more cuts than they have been used to,” says the Englishman, who works with, among others, PGA champion Brooks Koepka. “In America, you get 80 players within three shots after 36-holes every week. Every week. So the middle of the tour is very strong. I see even-par cuts in Europe that I know would be four or five under in the States.”

One last thing. If any of the ten who are PGA Tour-headed in 2024 is tempted to live at home and commute across the Atlantic multiple times, they might do well to listen to former Open champion Shane Lowry.

“If you go to the PGA Tour you have to give it everything,” says the Irishman, whose primary base is now in Florida. “Plenty have tried to do it from Europe. I did when we had our first daughter, Iris. And it was horrible. I was jet-lagged all the time, tired all the time and not getting the sort of practice you want to be doing for playing on the PGA Tour. At home, you are putting on greens running 8-9 on the Stimpmeter. I went to the Memorial Tournament once and the greens were running at 14. I couldn’t get the hang of that quick enough to compete.

“All of which is why I live in the States now. The best players in the world are practicing there in great conditions every day. If you want to be up there with them, you need to be working alongside them.”

Image: Andy Lyons

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While on the other side of the pond, JT and his wife Jillian Wisniewski decided to get in a luxurious Lake Como vacation. Because he’s a millennial through and through, Thomas had to provide an Instagram photo dump, which was a mistake with Lowry lurking. The opening was small but more than enough for the Irishman.

 

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A post shared by Justin Thomas (@justinthomas34)

Shane Lowry’s comment on JT’s Instagram post from Lake Como ?? pic.twitter.com/RL3zfpKamM

— claire rogers (@kclairerogers) October 10, 2023

“Any pics from Rome???” Lowry asked to which JT replied, “Shane it’s been two weeks and was starting to forget…… ??” The laughing emoji could just as easily be the crying emoji here.

There’s no other response for Thomas except to say something to the extent of “See you at Bethpage.” Until then, we don’t see Lowry laying off the Americans anytime soon. Nor should he. This is what the Ryder Cup is for: Rowdy matches and trash talk for years to come … or until the next one that is.

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OK, so the crying. Lowry, making his second appearance for Europe after going 1-2-0 on debut at Whistling Straits in 2021, has been positively overwhelmed in the team room at Marco Simone. He credited not only captain Luke Donald, but all the DP World Tour staff who control the European side, for preparing content and gestures that have reduced the 2019 Open champion to tears.

“Look, it’s an emotional week, and even some of the stuff that’s happened already this week would get you quite emotional,” Lowry said. “I think being a part of something that is bigger than you or anything else is pretty cool.”

Pressed as to what that content was, the 36-year-old blushed.

“Ah, probably shouldn’t be saying this … a lot of stuff goes into this week, and there’s videos that are played in the team rooms in the evenings, motivational videos, and just hits home a little bit,” he said. “I’m not going to elaborate much further than that, but Luke and his team have done a great job. There’s no stone left unturned this week. Everyone at the DP World Tour has made this week the most special week in golf.”

Has he cried already? “Yes.”

We can only guess Lowry was shown videos of his emotional reaction to losing 4&2 to Patrick Cantlay in a spicy Sunday singles match at Whistling Straits, where Europe were thumped 19-9.

“I cried today,” Lowry said at Whistling Straits. “I didn’t cry when I won the Open. I had another daughter a few weeks ago. [My wife] Wendy is probably going to give me [expletive] for this, but I didn’t cry. Lads in the team-room were crying. You wouldn’t believe the emotion this tournament brings out in people.”

Two years later, the loss still stings. “Whistling Straits was hard to take,” Lowry said. “But it was quite motivating for me coming away from that, and it’s quite motivating for me this week.

“I’m looking forward to going out there and hopefully earning some points for Europe, and hopefully we can all do a great job at trying to win the trophy back.”

Shane Lowry and Tommy Fleetwood enjoy some time on the 18th green after their practice session on Tuesday. Ramsey Cardy

Now to Lowry throwing a ball in the water. He and Tommy Fleetwood were having a friendly nine-hole wager against Rory McIlroy and debutant Sepp Straka on Tuesday when McIlroy chipped in for birdie at the par-4 eighth to win the hole.

“It looked like me and Tommy were going to win the hole, and then he chipped in from nowhere, so that was disappointing,” Lowry said, laughing. “No, we were just having a bit of fun out there. We were having a game, and he won the hole, so I threw his ball away.”

Something that didn’t make Lowry laugh, however, was recent criticism that he should not have been given one of six captain’s picks for Europe. Many on social media suggested Lowry shouldn’t make the team considering his most recent top-10 was the Honda Classic in February. Clearly motivated, Lowry tied or third earlier this month in the Irish Open.

“I felt like at the Irish Open, what should have been an amazing few days after getting picked on the Ryder Cup team, was kind of a bit of a downer for me because I had to kind of fight off all this negative talk in my head. But I did a good job of that,” he said.

“I feel like at the Irish Open and [a T-18] Wentworth, I’ve played some of the best golf I’ve played all year. If people are talking about you saying you shouldn’t be on the team, it’s obviously not going to sit well with you because you feel like you should be there and you want to be there.

“Statistics don’t lie. That’s the reason I’m here.”

Main image: Shane Lowry at his Ryder Cup press conference. Ramsey Cardy

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Just over a week has passed since European Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald added six picks of varying predictability, interest and controversy to the automatic qualifiers and completed the side he hopes will win back the trophy from the Americans at the Marco Simone Country Club just outside Rome later this month.

Maybe only one of the six wildcards, however, covered all three of those three adjectives. While a case could certainly be made for the inclusion of former Open champion Shane Lowry, the presence of the Irishman ahead of Poland’s Adrian Meronk was a shock for many observers. Donald’s repeated intention to pick form players had obviously been abandoned, or at least deemed to be flawed thinking. Lowry had, until his T-3 finish in last week’s Irish Open, not recorded a top-10 in any tournament since February.

Still, playing at home in Ireland, Lowry (at least in some minds) went a long way to confirming the validity of his selection by shooting 12 under par at the K Club and finishing only two shots behind the new champion (succeeding Meronk), Vincent Norrman. From somewhere, he had gained some motivation and inspiration from any and all of the negativity surrounding his selection. The suggestions that he did not belong in what will be his second Ryder Cup clearly struck a nerve. An air of defensiveness pervaded his response to that charge.

“I know there was a little bit about that last week,” Lowry said, before pausing for thought, on Tuesday ahead of the BMW Championship at Wentworth. “I need to be careful here. It didn’t sit very well with me, to be honest. Yes, my results have not been amazing this year. But I feel if you purely go down to statistics and go down to the 12 best players in Europe, I’m one of them. I feel like I deserve my place on the team.

“I didn’t feel like I had to go out and prove anything to anyone last week,” he continued. “The Irish Open is important to me and a tournament I wanted to play well in. If I shut a few people up, so be it, but I wasn’t trying to do that last week. I wasn’t trying to finish third last week. I was trying to win last week. So last week was disappointing for me. This week is the same. I’m trying to win the tournament here this week. I know I deserve to be on that team, and I know I’ll be good in Rome in a couple of weeks. I’m very excited for it.”

While it wasn’t too surprising to hear that Lowry was a little miffed to find himself a controversial pick, it would be remiss not to agree with his assessment of his status as one of Europe’s best-12 players. His record — but not his recent form — speaks to that fact. And he had some further thoughts on the matter.

“I think I’m a good player for a start,” he said. ‘I think I’m not going to be afraid of anyone that comes to stand on first tee in two weeks’ time. I think I’ll be good for the rookies. I think I’ll be good for team morale or in the team room. I think I’ll be passionate. I’ll show my emotions. I’ll enjoy myself.”

Shane Lowry hits his approach to the 18th hole in the final round of the BMW PGA Championship that he won last year. Ross Kinnaird

Speaking of which, Lowry was back at Wentworth two days before defending his title in the BMW PGA Championship and just a few hours from returning from Marco Simone. On Monday, all 12 of the Europeans and their caddies (the loopers were absent from the American group that visited Marco Simone over the weekend) took in the Ryder Cup site, played 18 holes and had what Lowry claimed was “an amazing few hours together”.

Surprisingly, not too much of the chat revolved around the set-up of the course, although he did concede the rough is “pretty thick”.

“Yesterday was a very worthwhile exercise,” Lowry went on. “We had a dinner last night and had a team meeting and some dinner and just told stories. The older guys told stories and the rookies listened. It was great. Everyone spoke last night. It was very, very cool, just to get everyone involved. So it was one of those days that we got a lot done, things we won’t need to do in two weeks. Any hour you can save the week of the Ryder Cup is needed.”

And the course?

“You need to hit fairways and you need to hit greens, and you need to stay in the hole, and that’s the way we like it,” he said. “The rough is pretty brutal in spots but it’s no different to what you might see at the US Open. But if you go decently off the fairways, it’s going to get very interesting. I only lost one ball, so I was pretty happy with myself. I played with Bob [MacIntyre], Sepp [Straka] and Justin Rose, and yeah, we were pretty good. One of the other groups lost a few balls. When the Americans get their home Ryder Cup, they try and set up the course to suit them. This time I think the vice-captains are trying to set up the golf course to suit us.”

That exercise is far from an exact science, given the number of variables involved when 18-hole match play is the game, a fact Lowry was quick to acknowledge. Citing the fact that World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler has been far and away the best player on the planet this year tee-to-green, the bearded Irishman conceded the “course will suit him”.

“They have got some of the best players in the world,” he said. “But we also have some of the best players in the world. I honestly think that it all comes down to who gets off to a fast start and who holes the most putts. That’s what Ryder Cups are about. We have been told that we’re setting the course up for us. So it should suit us. But if we don’t play good enough, we are not going to win.”

One last thing. In case anyone hasn’t noticed, there is a big event going on this week at Wentworth, one Lowry has enjoyed more than most over the years. Defending champion this week, in 13 appearances in the biggest event on the DP World Tour, Lowry has 10 top-20 finishes and five top-10s. Donald take note. This course set-up clearly suits the 2019 champion golfer of year’s game.

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Shane Lowry is realistic about his results this year. They’ve not been terrible by any means, but they have been disappointing when compared to his win at the DP World Tour’s prestigious BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth one year ago.

Since then, Lowry has registered just one top-10 worldwide.

“My form probably has not been the greatest,” Lowry said Tuesday during a press conference ahead of the DP World Tour’s Irish Open at the famed K Club. “But some of the bigger events I’ve played some of my best golf,” referencing his T-16 at the Masters, T-12 at the PGA Championship and two top-15s in PGA Tour “designated” events.

Still, the 2019 Open champion got a call from European Ryder Cup skipper Luke Donald on Sunday night that he had earned one of the six captain’s picks made official on Monday.

“I hadn’t talked to Luke for a few weeks, so it was nice to get the official call,” Lowry said. “There’s nothing bigger than the Ryder Cup, and hopefully I can go to Rome and show people what I’m made of.”

Lowry concedes he is guilty of allowing his year-long push to qualify for the European team to become a minor distraction. The qualification period began the week of his BMW win.

RELATED: With the European team finalized, our writers debate snubs, surprises and lingering questions

“I definitely said at the start of the year, my big thing was to not only make the team but win the Ryder Cup this year [as] one of my main goals, and I probably put too much pressure on myself,” said Lowry, who won one point in three matches during his 2021 Ryder Cup debut at Whistling Straits.

Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm and Robert MacIntyre qualified off the European points list while FedEx Cup champ Viktor Hovland, Tyrrell Hatton and Matt Fitzpatrick came from the World points list. Donald then rounded out the team with Lowry, Ludvig Aberg, Tommy Fleetwood, Nicolai Højgaard, Justin Rose and Sepp Straka. Controversially, Donald left out Poland’s Adrian Meronk, a tall and powerful driver whose three DP World Tour victories over the past 12 months include the Irish Open, Australian Open and Italian Open at Marco Simone, the same Rome course hosting this month’s Ryder Cup.

Many pundits and fans on social media saw Højgaard’s pick as a snubbing of Meronk. The pick was likely between those two as Aberg had earned a pick despite the rookie pro having not played in a major championship yet. The Swede, 23, registered a top-five and a victory (European Masters) in the final two qualifying events in Europe.

A strong argument could be made Meronk is far more in-form than Højgaard, who has not won in over 18 months. Lowry, however, defended Donald’s wildcard.

“Well, people have their opinion,” he said. “Adrian has had a great year, and he’s unfortunate to miss out, but somebody has to miss out. I’m not going to sit here and disagree with Luke Donald.

“I watched [European Masters] last weekend; I think Ludvig is probably going to play in the next six or seven Ryder Cups, so this is a good one to start with in Rome with a very strong team. I think he’ll fit into the team nicely. He drives the ball incredibly well, which is what you need around that golf course, and I think he’s a great fit for the team.”

RELATED: Tale of the tape—comparing the European and American squads

Lowry, 36, expects the weight off his shoulders as conducive to good play over the next two weeks at the Irish Open and BMW PGA.

“I always have very high expectations of myself, so I expect to come here and compete and give myself a chance on Sunday,” he said, having won the Irish Open in 2009 as an amateur. “I’d dearly love to win [this] again. I’m playing two tournaments I love playing, two golf courses I like playing the next two weeks, so there’s no reason why I can’t come out in form.

“I live for the occasion and I love it. Apart from major championship golf, it doesn’t really get bigger than the next couple of weeks for me, and then obviously the Ryder Cup is probably one of the biggest tournaments in the world. I’ll have no problem getting motivated, don’t worry. Come Friday morning on that first tee, I’ll be ready to play.”

Now that the European team is rounded out, it begs the question, who are the favourites? Plenty say Europe, given top players like FedEx Cup winner Hovland are in form and the U.S. hasn’t won a Ryder Cup on European soil since 1993.

“I don’t gamble on golf, so I wouldn’t know,” Lowry said laughing as he walked out of the media centre.

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It was a little more than a year ago that the Old World club’s leader Henrik Stenson vacated his captaincy by departing to LIV Golf, and a number of LIV Golf players such as Sergio Garcia and Ian Poulter vacated their DP World Tour memberships, making themselves ineligible for the biennial match. But the Europeans are welcoming in a new era, one highlighted by Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm, Viktor Hovland and Matt Fitzpatrick and bolstered by automatic qualifiers Tyrrell Hatton and Robert MacIntyre. On Monday, those six qualifiers were joined by captain’s picks in Tommy Fleetwood, Sepp Straka, Justin Rose, Shane Lowry, Ludvig Aberg and Nicolai Hojgaard.

Is this team good enough to retake the cup and continue the European home-winning streak that dates back to 1993? Our editors offer their instant analysis at Stenson’s replacement, Luke Donald’s picks and how the Europeans stack up as they prepare to make the trip to Italy and Marco Simone at the end of September.

Biggest surprise among the captain’s picks?

Nicolai Hojgaard. He’s deserving, with three finishes of T-6 or better in his last six starts. And there was a real possibility Ludvig Aberg’s European Masters win would have cannibalized Hojgaard’s chances, in that there was theoretically room on the Euro roster for one upstart but not two. Give Donald credit; it’s a fun and “sexy” decision, but above all else it’s a decision that’s brazen. —Joel Beall

Stacy Revere

Just as we saw with Zach Johnson’s American selections, Donald was fairly predictable, for the most part, with his six. Aberg’s addition will raise eyebrows in some corners, but only among those not paying attention. The kid was on the express escalator to this day even before he won Sunday’s European Masters. —Dave Shedloski

I’m having a hard time being surprised by just about anything Donald did with his picks, even picking the palpably off-form Shane Lowry. Having six captain’s selections was always going to offer him a safety net, which is important for the Europeans. Much more than the Americans, they need to have a system in place that will absolutely identify what the captain sees as absolutely the best 12 available. The standard of player on the DP World Tour drops off pretty significantly once you get past the obvious names. Not as much as it used to, admittedly. Things are changing. But that fact remains a factor in every Ryder Cup calculation across the pond. —John Huggan

About half this European team could be considered surprising if you strip out the context around them. But when you take a step back, it’s truly incredible Aberg is on this team. Not because he isn’t a very good player (he is), or because he couldn’t become a generational one (as Donald says), but because his inclusion is basically unprecedented. Aberg is the first player in history to make a Ryder Cup team without playing in a major, and no player in the modern era has made the team so soon after turning pro. Not Rory McIlroy, or Jon Rahm, or Sergio Garcia, or Nick Faldo, or any other European Ryder Cup greats. —Luke Kerr-Dineen

Biggest snub?

Adrian Meronk, obviously. What looked like a very complicated European picture clarified over the last couple weeks, to the point there were really only 13 players Luke Donald could have taken. Meronk was No. 13, and I don’t think he deserved to be. For all the talk of an “old boys club” on the U.S. side, I can’t think of a better way to describe the selection of Shane Lowry, who doesn’t have either the recent form or the Ryder Cup pedigree (1-2 in his lone appearance) to make him an obvious pick over Meronk, who won three times this season—including at the host course!!!—and was better than Lowry in the second half of the summer. —Shane Ryan

Meronk is the player with the biggest, most legitimate gripe. He currently sits third on the Race to Dubai, and is the Australian Open, Irish Open and Italian Open champion. And the last of those titles was won on the Marco Simone course that will host the Ryder Cup later this month. Then there is Meronk’s style of play. The man makes birdies for fun. By way of recent example, he made 20, plus one eagle, in the European Masters that concluded just yesterday. And his overall form this year has been excellent. Other than his victories, he has four other top-10s and three more finishes between 10th and 20th. Based on Donald’s repeated public assertions that he would select “in-form” players, the Englishman has let down Meronk. —J.H.

Octavio Passos

Meronk is the obvious one. But a quick word of respect for Victor Perez. Perez is out of form, which ultimately cost him. But three career DP World Tour wins and fourth in the Race to Dubai is an impressive track record for a player who is still young. Hopefully we’ll see him on Team Europe in the future. —L.K.D.

Meronk. The others all noted he won at the Ryder Cup site earlier this year and has been playing well since spring. Conversely, he’s in that purgatory where he’s too old to be young (Hojgaard, Aberg) and too young to be considered part of the old guard (Rose, Lowry). By not grabbing the final DP World Tour points spot, Meronk left himself vulnerable to politics. —J.B.

Pick that might haunt Donald?

Shane Lowry. As I said regarding Meronk’s non-selection, Donald asserted more than once that form would be a big factor in his thinking when it came to captain’s picks. On that basis, Lowry has no business making a second appearance in the Ryder Cup. His only solid performances this year are in the Masters (T-16), the PGA (T-12) and the U.S. Open (T-20). It’s is possible to build a case, then, for his inclusion around some sort of “he’s the man for the big occasion” theory. For me though, and as much as I am an unashamed Lowry fan, his selection represents a huge risk. If he arrives in Italy playing the same as he has done for most of this year, he is going to be not much more than a passenger Europe can ill afford. —J.H.

Warren Little

Probably Hojgaard, though had Donald picked Meronk, then that pick would have been questioned just as much. It’s likely Hojgaard won’t see much action—one team match and singles. —Dave Shedloski

Sepp Straka doesn’t get the respect he deserves from European fans because of how much golf he’s played in the U.S. over his career. As a fellow transatlatic talent person, I’ve always had a soft spot for Straka, a player who is only getting better. He belongs on this team, and the ones he’ll be on in the future. But unfairly or not, rookie/captain’s picks always come into the event with a sharper focus on them. If Straka doesn’t grab a few points, I could see some wondering if Donald didn’t scrutinize Straka enough. —L.K.D.

I’m one of those people who believes even if Justin Thomas goes 0-5 in Rome, it was the correct move to pick him based on his 16-5-3 record in team match play. But Donald’s selection of Lowry doesn’t hit the quite the same for me. Again, the man is 1-2 in his lone appearance, in iffy form—he didn’t even play the last European event—and if he lays an egg in Rome, I think Donald should be in for some deserved second-guessing. —S.R.

Overall impression of the European team?

As a thought experiment this roster is alluring, almost a perfect alchemy of youth and experience, of firepower and fortitude. The Hojgaard and Aberg picks are as exciting as captain’s selections can be. Winning the press conference does not guarantee winning the match, and the Euro team still lacks the depth of their American counterparts. Still, Donald’s club will be a formidable unit, one more than capable of winning back the Ryder Cup. —J.B.

This team has a really nice balance between truly elite players (Rahm, McIlroy, Hovland), a core with experience (Fitzpatrick, Fleetwood, Lowry, Hatton, Rose) and young talent with potential to grow with the team (Straka, Aberg, Hojgaard, Macintyre). Yes, as one of Golf Digest’s resident Europeans, I’m biased. But if you’re a fan of Team Europe, you should be pleased with how this team came together. Forza! —L.K.D.

Stuart Franklin

Beyond the very slight Lowry-over-Meronk controversy, Donald has to be feeling pretty great about his team. Hovland is the hottest player in the world, Rahm is a killer and the entire top half of the team seems to be in great form. The question marks were always going to be near the bottom, but the addition of recent winner Aberg feels massive, and smart, and when you combine all that with the fact that they’re playing at home, this team looks really, really good. The panic that came with the LIV defections can safely be stowed; Europe is ready. —S.R.

Donald has done a commendable job in assembling a decent team given the challenges of this era. It’s top-heavy, reminiscent of some American squads led by Tiger and Phil and some very good players. That could be a problem. That said, Europe’s players have a way of congealing when they are defending home turf. A lot will be on the shoulders of Rahm, McIlroy and Hovland, three of the top four players in the world, but if they gut up and get assists from Fitzpatrick and captain’s picks Fleetwood, Lowry and Rose, another U.S. setback abroad is in the cards. Oh, and let’s not discount the smackdown Europe received at Whistling Straits as a motivator. —D.S.

Whether it turns out to be a good or a bad thing remains to be seen, but this European team reminds me of the sides that turned the Ryder Cup tide back in the 1980s. Four decades ago captain Tony Jacklin built a winning formula around a group of truly world-class players like Seve Ballesteros, Nick Faldo, Sandy Lyle, Bernhard Langer and Ian Woosnam backed up by guys like Howard Clark, Mark James, Sam Torrance and Ken Brown, all one notch below that level. I see what Donald has available in a similar light. in fact, he might be in even better shape. Where Jacklin originally had five superstars, then two more in Colin Montgomerie and Jose Maria Olazabal, maybe half of Donald’s side are similarly transcendent talents. —J.H.

The post Did Luke Donald get it right with his 2023 European Ryder Cup team? Our writers explore surprises, snubs and any lingering questions appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

One day after a group of Scottish Open competitors admitted to varying degrees of bemusement when faced with the inherently unpredictable nature of links golf, former Open champion Shane Lowry was clearly on the other side of this particular golfing coin.

The Irishman, owner of two of the most educated hands in the professional game, has some history by the seaside, much of it positive. Unforgettably the winner of golf’s oldest major at Royal Portrush in 2019, the 36-year-old also claimed the Irish Open title in foul conditions at County Louth in 2009, when he was still an amateur.

Lowry knows how to get things done when the wind is blowing, the rain is falling and many of his contemporaries are wishing they were somewhere other than enjoying a day out on the links.

“I’m not saying I don’t have to think about it at all, but I get back into links mode quite quickly,” said Lowry after playing nine holes at the Renaissance Club where this week he is making his first appearance in the Scottish Open since 2016. “I was actually chatting to Corey Connors about this yesterday. Coming back to links golf is a mental battle. In your mind, it’s hard to get yourself hitting, say, a 7-iron only 130 yards. That’s way more difficult than any physical aspect of the shot.

“So the big thing is seeing the shots, which is something I’ve always done pretty well. I have a good imagination for that sort of thing. I certainly don’t have to work on that or anything else specifically in order to get ready for the Open at Hoylake next week.”

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Indeed, listening to Lowry talk of just how he plays golf by the seaside is an education for anyone looking to master the intricacies of the game’s most stimulating—and often vexing—format.

“Last week at home in Ireland I was hitting 8-irons only 120 yards or so,” he explained. “And I hit some nice shots. At times too, I went the extra mile and hit a 7-iron. Just to exaggerate the feel of what I was trying to do. It’s all about controlling the flight of the ball. Get that part right and judging how far the ball is going to go—downwind, or into the breeze—is more straightforward. Downwind can often be more difficult. It’s always hard to know how far a shot will carry when the breeze is at your back.

“I would agree that the trickiest part of all this is hitting the in-between shots the right distance, no matter what direction the wind is blowing. In those situations, it is all about feel. For me, the technique is almost irrelevant. I just get the yardage, feel the shot and do it.”

545331536 Shane Lowry on the 18th hole at Castle Stuart during the 2016 Scottish Open, the last time he’s played the event. Kevin C. Cox

Hang on though. The number? Isn’t that irrelevant for a man who is clearly an artist more than the sort of scientists that so dominate the modern game?

“The number is just a starting point really,” he added. “For example, let’s say I am 140 yards from the pin and the wind feels like it is going to deliver, say, 30 yards of hurt. So it’s a 170-yard shot. I hit my 8-iron 170 yards, but I know 8-iron is not the play. It will come up short, the ball climbing into the headwind. So I know I have to go down the grip on a 7-iron to keep the ball lower than normal. But at address all I’m thinking about is making a smooth swing. Again, it’s all about the feel.”

In a similar vein, Lowry expressed some contentment with regard to the sometimes-maligned Tom Doak-design he will be playing this week. Nine years ago, he competed in the Scottish Open at the notoriously difficult Royal Aberdeen and arrived at Hoylake for the Open feeling diminished both physically and mentally. The last thing he wants to be doing this week is struggling too mightily, even in conditions he knows play into his strengths.

“I do feel like I have an advantage over most players when it comes to links golf,” he contends. “I’m good in the wind. I see the game very well. That’s my biggest edge. I’m not one-dimensional. Which is not to say I don’t like to play in perfect weather. I do. But I know when the weather gets bad, I have the shots to cope with the conditions.”

As for why he is in Scotland this week rather than following his most recent habit of playing social golf on links at home, Lowry’s explanation is simple.

“It’s just scheduling,” he initially claimed. “Well, that and the fact that I need points for the FedEx Cup and the Ryder Cup.”

Speaking of the biennial contest with the Americans, Lowry is keen to make up for the heavy defeat the Europeans suffered at Whistling Straits two years ago. Already he is part of locker room chat on the subject with the likes of Tommy Fleetwood and Tyrrell Hatton.

“I’m obviously hoping to be part of the side again this year,” says Lowry. “I’m not nailed on yet. But the team is shaping up very well. I hear people saying they are hoping for a close match. But I’m not. Although I do think it would be amazing if it all comes down to the last few matches on Sunday afternoon. I was part of a team that got beat very badly last time. But the margins are fine. I think we lost by 10 points. But that is only five matches. Having said that, we have a score to settle. Of course, the Americans won’t be short of motivation either. It’s been 30 years since they have won over here. We are aware of that.”

Still, before all that, there is a big tournament and a major championship to be played. So much to look forward to.

“The thing I love most about the Open is the atmosphere,” Lowry concludes. “Being announced on the first tee is pretty good too. But it is the fans who make the Open what it is—the best tournament in the world.”

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“The PAC was never something I thought I wanted to be involved in, to be honest,” said Lowry said ahead of playing in this week’s Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship. “I always saw the lads on committees and stuff and was like, surely that just gets in the way. But I thought about it a lot and spoke to a lot of people. I think where the game is at the minute, it would be nice to be involved. I feel like I could have a little bit of input into what’s going on. I’m looking forward to being a part of that.

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“The fact that I am a global player probably helped,” he continued. “It’s probably nice for them to have someone like me on the committee. I don’t know what I can bring though. I don’t even know what it involves. I know it’s four meetings a year. But I’m involved now, and we’ll see how it pans out.”

As a follow-up to his new-found stature, Lowry was asked about the “wider picture” of the DP World Tour as the former Open champion heads into the first full-field stroke-play event of 2023. Is the circuit in a “good place?” As ever, there are arguments on both sides. Some will point to the field this week in the Middle East. Without the presence of 11 LIV Tour players, it can reasonably be said that the line-up would look a little thin on top. But Lowry remains hopeful for the future.

“In the last year or so, we’ve been sidetracked into thinking $20 million or $100 million is normal,” he said. “And that’s what we should be playing for. That’s what we’re worth. Everybody is throwing out figures that are just astronomical. So if we are playing for €2 million or €3 million on this tour, that is ‘not enough’. The reality is that this tour has grown. Through our alliance with the PGA Tour the prize money is guaranteed to grow every year for the next 13 years. That’s good for the tour. It’s sustainable, which is the big thing. A sustainable product is something you need to have, and the tour has that.

“Could this tour be better?” he continued. “We could all be better in anything we do. But with a steady growth over the next number of years, this tour will keep improving.”

And that, said Lowry is something every player has an obligation to maintain. Just as Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer left a better PGA Tour for the next generation of players, so did Fred Couples and Davis Love for Tiger. And so, in turn, does the current crop of stars on both sides of the Atlantic.

“I just hope that in 30 years time, the guys that on tour are playing a better tour than I am playing now,” Lowry said. “As a group of players, we need to be aware of that responsibility. On the European Tour, guys like Seve Ballesteros and José Maria Olazabal passed the tour down to Thomas Bjorn and his contemporaries. Now they have passed it on to us. So it’s up to us to pass the Tour on to the next generation in a better place than we got it.

“That’s what’s important for golf over the next while,” Lowry continued. “And that’s why I am happy to be involved in the PAC on the PGA Tour. I am passionate about where golf is going and what’s right for the game.”

All in all then, he sounds like just the right man for the PAC job.

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