July 20, 2025: Former Open champion Shane Lowry admitted he was “gutted” after a disappointing third round at Royal Portrush, where he carded a three-over-par 74 on Saturday, slipping to three over for the tournament.
Lowry, who famously won the Claret Jug at the same venue in 2019, faced a rough stretch this week — including a two-shot penalty assessed after his second round for causing his ball to move during a practice swing. The ruling left the Irishman frustrated and compounded what would already be a physically challenging weekend.
Returning for his third round while battling a virus, Lowry said he struggled with fatigue and illness throughout the day.
“To be honest, I’m gutted,” he said. “I wanted to do well so badly today and this week. I put so much into this week that, yeah, it’s hard to take.”
Despite briefly clawing back to level par after a birdie on the 13th, Lowry’s round unravelled with a quadruple bogey at the 14th, followed by a bogey at the 17th. He admitted that his illness left him drained.
“Honestly, every bathroom I went in and tried to throw up, I couldn’t,” he shared. “It’s just such a bad feeling. I think lack of energy towards the end maybe did me in.”
The 37-year-old also noted how difficult it was to enjoy the atmosphere on what should have been a special day in front of a home crowd.
“Saturday at The Open in your home country — I should enjoy it a lot more than I did, just because of how I felt,” he said.
While Lowry refrained from dwelling on the penalty, he acknowledged the timing of his illness and mishaps couldn’t have been worse. “Look, I don’t want to make excuses. It is what it is. It’s just really bad timing, obviously.”