Shane Lowry’s score became more and more incredible from hole to hole, turning the golfer into the early star of the 2024 PGA Championship on Moving Day. In the end, the Irishman gave a flawless performance that almost made major history. After playing over 130,000 major rounds, Lowry was given the chance to finish with the lowest round ever achieved in a major. He missed the score of 61 strokes by just a few centimeters.
Shane Lowry impresses at the PGA Championship 2024
Shane Lowry secured his ticket for the weekend with two solid rounds of 69 in the first two rounds of the second major of the year. Shane Lowry was on top form early on Moving Day. With a birdie on hole 2, he kicked off a round of golf that almost went down in the history books at the end of the day. His first birdie was followed by three more in succession. Two more birdies on holes 7 and 9 led the 37-year-old to record a 29 on the front nine. Up to this point, Lowry had made no mistakes and would remain so until the end of his round.
Shane Lowry just matched the Men’s Major Championship scoring record with a 62. 🔥#PGAChamp pic.twitter.com/edloJzyssv
— PGA Championship (@PGAChampionship) May 18, 2024
He added three more stroke gains on the back nine (on holes 13, 14 and 17), giving him the chance to bring his score to ten strokes under par, a 61, on the 18th. Although he missed the fairway with his first two shots, he managed a masterful approach from a challenging position. However, he failed to sink the putt from just over three meters into the hole, resulting in a 62.
The golfer summed up his round: “I enjoyed it. I enjoyed every minute of it, obviously. Probably the most disappointed anyone can ever be shooting 62. I knew what was at stake. Just didn’t hit the ball hard enough. Had it on a good read and just broke away from the hole. Look, I went out there with a job to do today, and my job was to try to get myself back in the tournament, and I definitely did that.” Continue: “I knew I just really wanted to hole it. Probably too much. Yeah, it was just — I kind of stood back and allowed myself to enjoy the moment. It was a pretty cool moment to have. It would have been a pretty cool moment to kind of seal the deal and do it. But at the end of the day, I knew even if I didn’t do it that I done what I needed to do today, and I’m pretty happy with that.”
A 62 has been played four times so far in golf’s 100-year major history. Although he missed the record score, Shane Lowry’s third round at the 2024 PGA Championship deserves the utmost respect.