Thursday 66 has Shane Lowry among the Irish Open leaders

“I played okay,” he said of a round that lapsed into over par with a three-putt on the third before swinging back in the opposite direction.

Shane Lowry shot an opening round 66 to sit just one stroke behind the early leaders at the 2019 Dubai Duty Free Irish Open on Thursday.

That's great news for a tournament getting by without the star power of Rory McIlroy and even better is the fact that Lowry came off the 18th green happy with his score but without having played his best.