Shane Lowry is at Marco Simone preparing for his second Ryder Cup appearance after making his debut in Europe’s defeat to the US at Whistling Straits in 2021.
His first outing on that occasion came in the Friday afternoon fourball matches when he was paired with Rory McIlroy, but it ended with disappointment for the duo as Tony Finau and Harris English won 4&3.
Following a practice session ahead of the 2023 edition, Lowry admitted he’d like the chance for the pair to put that right this year.
Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry were paired in the Friday afternoon fourball match in the 2021 edition
(Image credit: Getty Images)
He said: “Look, obviously, Rory and I are good friends, so I think we would love to play together, and we’d love to go out there at some stage. We probably feel like we didn’t do ourselves justice in fourballs at Whistling Straits, and I think maybe we’d like the opportunity to go at it again and try and win a point this time.”
The decision over whether to hand Lowry and McIlroy another chance to prove themselves in a pairing will come down to Team Europe captain Luke Donald, and the 2019 Open champion admitted he’s had no indication whether his wish will be granted.
He continued: “I honestly don’t know. You might call whatever on that, but I honestly don’t know what’s going to happen on Friday or Saturday yet. We haven’t been told. We’re going to play together and we’re going to play the next couple of days, and I’m sure we’ll find out soon. But obviously would be nice.”
Lowry doesn’t need any reminders of McIlroy’s ability, but he got one anyway during the practice session in the form of McIlroy’s outrageous holed shot from the brutal Ryder Cup rough. He acknowledged that they don’t come much better than the Ulsterman, no matter which era you turn to.
Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry played in a practice round together in preparation for the match
(Image credit: Getty Images)
He said: “Look, anybody would want to play with Rory. He’s one of the best players in the world. He’s one of the best players in my opinion – he’s in the top players of all time already, and he’s not even nearly finished….
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