Torrey Pines, California …
Shane Lowry is ready to kick-start his New Year surfing a victory wave at this week’s Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines.
The sometimes-surfer but very much full-time golfer has chosen to make Tiger Woods return to the PGA Tour also his start to the New Year on the clifftop course overlooking the great expanse of the western shores of the Pacific Ocean.
The 30-year old Lowry joins fellow Irish Padraig Harrington and West Waterford’s in-form Seamus Power in the $US 6.9m event and where Woods has won seven Farmers Insurance Open titles and the 2008 U.S. Open.
Lowry’s also no stranger to the event having finished T13th in 2016 and a securing a then career-best Stateside finish of seventh in 2015.
And when Lowry casts his eye out over the Pacific it will be thoughts of not have to criss-cross the Atlantic Ocean on the opposite side of the Northern American continent that’s drawn the current World No. 64 to California.
Surger Shane Lowry but this week it be the allure of the golf course rather than the waves below.
Lowry moved his wife, Wendy and young daughter, Iris to Florida earlier this month and into rented premises within the Mirasol Resort located just minutes from the front gates to PGA National and venue in a month for the Honda Classic.
Already Lowry feels at ease at the thought of a return flight across ‘The Pond’ as he did so many times last season he could not count.
“I made a conscious decision when we had Iris that I would not be away from home for more than two weeks, so it’s been nice to settle into the Mirasol Resort,” he said.
“I’m already enjoying getting out playing in shorts while the practice facilities at Mirasol are first class.
“The thing is you look at these guys who were born here in the States and that they might play 30 events a year and when you’re from here and you live over here, it is just so easy to travel to tournaments.
A view to whet Shane Lowry’s surfing appetite – looking off the 16th tee at Torrey Pines.
“Wendy and Iris are here this week and we are travelling also to the next four events in a row up to an including the Honda, so I won’t have to worry about heading back to Ireland every couple of weeks.
“I already feel relaxed and comfortable as undertaking all that travel last year was just killing my golf and then at the end of the year when I played in Europe I produced my best results of the year.”
Those results included sharing the lead heading to the last round of the Turkish Airlines Open and storming his way to second in the Tour’s season-ending DP World Tour Championship in Dubai.
It was an effort at Jumierah Estates that lifted Lowry from 85th to 58th on the World Rankings and while he tees-up this week at World No. 64 he is only 14 places and some two months away from securing a Masters invitation.
“That’s why I am here at the Farmers Insurance as I will be playing this week and the next four events and knowing I need to play well to move up the World Rankings and get myself back to the Masters.”
Irish Open winner and new World No. 2 Jon Rahm defends his title and if successful would overtake World No. 1 Dustin Johnson.
Though with all the focus on Woods, the 23-year old Spaniard is more than pleased to allow Woods to attract most of the media focus.
“I welcome it and the more attention the media has on Tiger, the better for me, quite frankly,” Rahm said smiling.
“So, you can put all the attention on what Tiger’s doing and forget about what I’m doing, and that will be great with me, but we all know that’s not going to happen.”
