At The Open, 37 of the past 42 winners were within four strokes of the lead after R2, according to stats guru Justin Ray. When Shane Lowry won the 2019 Open Championship, he held the outright lead after 36 holes. This week, he is well outside the margin, yet he is playing to win. So when one reporter pressed him on whether his focus was winning or simply “having a good week,” Lowry’s irritation was clear.

Following R2, during a press conference, when Lowry stayed silent, the reporter explained the question again. Was his focus on having a good result for a good week? Lowry seemed bemused in the video shared by NUCLR Golf on X when he replied, “Like I don’t — why would I come here if I didn’t want to win? You say a good week would go a long way, but who cares about where I finish in the FedExCup, or when I’m 75 years of age… So like, I’m here to win the tournament. I’m here to compete at this level, and I’m here to put myself into contention.”

Lowry has indeed put himself into contention, if only tentatively. After opening rounds of 69 and 68, he wrapped up Friday sitting T17, his second‑round 68 leaving the Offaly man five strokes adrift of 36‑hole leader Lucas Herbert. And he seems stoked about that, too, adding, “I feel like I’ve done that somewhat. I’m quite a few back, but I feel like I’m in a good position heading into the weekend.”

🤔 golf trivia

This Should Be an Easy One, Right?

01/10

How Many Shots Was Bryson DeChambeau Penalized in R2 of the Open?

2134

Oops, bogey!

But don’t worry, there’s still the back 9 to prove your high golf IQ

PLAY GOLF TRIVIA

Few remember FedExCup finishes, and his point stands. Who’s going to look back in half a century and recall a finish just outside the top 10? He put it aptly: “You’re not going to say, oh, in 2026, you finished 25th in the FedExCup; well done.”

For the sake of the argument, the FedExCup rankings have been around since 2007, and you’d be hard‑pressed to name who wound up 25th. It was Ernie Els; a quick research will tell you. Yet, humor aside, Lowry has a point, especially considering the kind of season he is having.

In his 16 starts this season, he has missed the cut in five events, most recently at the Genesis Scottish Open. Even in the three majors he played, he wasn’t much of a threat, if at all. He missed the cut at the U.S. Open, finished T44 at the PGA Championship, and T30 at the Masters. He is also 55th in the FedExCup rankings. There’s no question: he is here to win.

He will, of course, need to make a run for it. In his words, Lowry stated in the same press conference, “Yeah, I feel like the way I’m playing, all I need is just a run. If I get my run, I feel like I’ll be dangerous this weekend.” Lowry doesn’t always show frustration, but he has had low moments before, like calling out an ESPN reporter for interfering in his PGA Championship ruling.

Interestingly, Lowry’s worldview differs from that of his best buddy, Rory McIlroy, who said he will be dead, so it doesn’t matter what people think of him or his legacy. Scottie Scheffler also had a similar thing to say.

Regardless, Lowry cares about how he is doing today, and it’s quite obvious in his decisions, too.

Shane Lowry is on the way to fixing everything wrong in his game

Following the missed cut at the U.S. Open, Shane Lowry stated, as per Irish Mirror, “I’d love to know what’s going on and I’m beating my head against a brick wall, because honestly, […] I felt like I did a lot of things well, and I’m going home Friday evening. It’s pretty s-it, to be honest.” Lowry ended up firing his caddie of three years, Darren Reynolds. He replaced Reynolds with Dermot Byrne. He was in search of new guidance, the fans speculated.

The results suggest he has.

For instance, in R1, he neatly made a six-footer for par on the 1st. He birdied the 2nd from 35 feet. In R2, he bogeyed the 17th but saved par from 176 yards to four feet on the 36th hole. Is it enough to drop him back into contention? That’s hard to say, but not impossible.

When asked if he’s comfortable at Royal Birkdale, he replied during the press conference, “The last few months have been probably, you would say, a bit of a speed bump in my career where your career is full of ups and downs… but hopefully hit straight back up this weekend.”

Again, it remains to be seen.