Having been first contested in 1927, the Irish Open is one of the most prestigious tournaments on the DP World Tour circuit.
Bobby Locke became the first non-British winner in 1938 when he defeated Henry Cotton by a single stroke at Portmarnock, but it wasn’t while 1976 until the first American winner was crowned when Ben Crenshaw reigned supreme – also at the County Dublin links. The long list of legendary champions include the likes of Bernhard Langer, Colin Montgomerie, Sir Nick Faldo and the late Seve Ballesteros.
Shane Lowry leads the Irish charge this week and will do so in fine fettle. Although winless this season, Lowry has posted top-three finishes at the Honda Classic, the Masters and the RBC Heritage as well as a top-15 at the Players Championship.
The 35-year-old was responsible for some of the most memorable scenes in DP World Tour history back in 2009 when he captured the Irish Open as an amateur. His continued success on the island of Ireland continued in 2019 with victory at the Open Championship at Royal Portrush.
Fellow Irishman Padraig Harrington is also in the field, fresh from his success at the US Senior Open at Saucon Valley Country Club. Having started the final day with a five shot lead, the 50-year-old held off a spirited charge from Steve Stricker to secure his maiden Senior Major title.
Newly-crowned US Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick returns to action this week. The King of Brookline, who joined Jack Nicklaus as the second player in history to win the US Amateur and US Open at the same venue, will be joined by brother Alex Fitzpatrick. The younger of the duo is making his professional debut in Ireland at the same tournament where Matt did back in 2014.
One notable absentee in the field this week is Rory McIlroy. The Northern Irishman has opted not to tee it up in the Irish Open and instead rest ahead of the JP McManus Pro-Am at Adare Manor next week.
Australian Lucas Herbert returns to defend his title at the venue where he was a wire-to-wire winner last year. The tournament will once again be contested at the…
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