PORTRUSH, Northern Eire — Eire’s Shane Lowry was assessed a two-stroke penalty following his second spherical on the Open Championship on Friday after the published video feed appeared to indicate his ball transferring barely when he took a apply swing within the tough on the twelfth gap.
Lowry made par on the outlet earlier than the penalty. The 2-shot deduction took him from a 1-under 69 to a 1-over 71 and positioned him at even par for the championship, making the minimize by one shot.
“It is clearly very disappointing,” Lowry stated. “I felt like I performed actually, very well in the present day. And yeah, that is arduous to take.”
The 2019 Open champion at Royal Portrush stated he was unaware that the ball moved or that there was any subject till he was strolling up the fifteenth fairway and a guidelines official approached him to say there was a chance his ball moved on his second shot on the twelfth.
“I’ve requested him, ‘What number of photographs penalty is that if it did?’ and he stated, ‘Two.'” Lowry stated. “Clearly then I really feel like I am on the minimize mark then, which isn’t very good. I really feel like I performed properly on the best way in after which clearly waited to see.”
After a 20-minute wait and dialogue contained in the scoring tent with guidelines officers and his taking part in companions, Scottie Scheffler and Collin Morikawa, Lowry emerged and the ruling was introduced.
“I needed to take it … I wasn’t arguing my case, however I am upset that they do not have extra digicam angles on it,” Lowry stated. “The one zoomed in sluggish movement — they’re attempting to inform me if it would not transfer from the bare eye, in the event you do not see it transferring, it did not transfer. I instructed them I positively was trying down in the direction of the ball as I used to be taking that apply swing, and I did not see it transfer.”
Lowry added that he felt like he took his apply swing properly away from the ball. He additionally stated that he felt like officers already had their resolution made earlier than they reviewed it with gamers following the spherical.
“If the ball moved, I’d have referred to as it on myself. My head was positively trying down on the ball and I did not see it transferring,” Lowry stated. “The very last thing I wish to do is sit there and argue and never take the penalty after which get slaughtered throughout social media tonight for being a cheat.”
When requested concerning the incident after his spherical, Scheffler stated he felt Lowry was put in a troublesome state of affairs having the digicam zoom in on his golf ball at that second and added it was very troublesome to see within the video if the ball was transferring or not.
“I am not going to state a robust opinion right here within the media on whether or not or not I assumed he deserved the penalty, however all I’ll say is it was a really powerful state of affairs for him to be put in, and I assumed he dealt with it very well,” Scheffler stated. “It is clearly very irritating. It is irritating for me as a competitor of his and a participant to look at him after form of cope with that as a result of the very last thing you wish to be recognized within the recreation of golf is any person who cheats.”
Regardless of the penalty, Lowry nonetheless made the minimize by one shot. Now, nonetheless, he’ll start the weekend 10 photographs behind Scheffler as an alternative of eight. In 2019, Lowry shot 63 at Portrush on Saturday to take management of the event.
“I am simply going to should take it — it is a dangerous break — and transfer on,” Lowry stated. “I am going to simply should mud myself off and get on the market tomorrow and provides it a go.”