'A couple too many glasses of wine' help Lowry swing easy and find birdies in Madrid

Offaly native rebounds from frustrating opening day to fire a five-under 66 at Open de Espana

Fri, 27 Sep, 2024 - 21:08

Staff

A splash of inspiration, courtesy of a couple of glasses of Spanish vino, worked wonders for Shane Lowry as he found his Friday groove and shot a five-under 66 to bring himself back into contention at the Open de Espana in Madrid.

The Offaly native had endured a frustrating start to proceedings in the Spanish capital on Thursday when an opening 75 which was devoid of a single birdie left him downcast. However an evening away from it all with a Ryder Cup teammate helped turn the tide, even if Lowry still sits a full nine shots behind impressive leader Angel Hidalgo who is chasing victory on home soil.

“If I’m honest, I had dinner with Tyrrell Hatton last night, and we had a couple too many glasses of wine," Lowry smiled afterward his second round. "So maybe that made me play a bit freer today, and I went out and just played care-free. This is a funny old game. On to the weekend!"

Hidalgo surged to a commanding four-shot lead after carding a 67 in the second round of the 2024 Acciona Open de España presented by Madrid.

The Spanish hopeful built on his opening 65 with another impressive performance, reaching ten under par, and distancing himself from the chasing pack led by England’s Joe Dean, who finished at six under.

Jon Rahm, a three-time champion of his national open, was in a group of five players a further shot back including compatriot Alfredo Garcia-Heredia, Frenchman Julien Guerrier, England's Sam Bairstow and United States Ryder Cup star Patrick Reed on five under.

Two more Spaniards, Adri Arnaus and David Puig, were at four under alongside England's Tommy Fleetwood, playing alongside Lowry, and American Jimmy Walker.

"Shane had a great round today," said Fleetwood. "He did everything right and so then obviously when you're playing with someone like that, you feel like you should be doing better when you're playing well."

Elsewhere Lauren Walsh sits tied for eighth at the LET French Open after a second-round 74 during which she struggled to build on her impressive opening 67. She now sits six shots off the lead on -1 overall. Douglas's Sara Byrne made the cut with a one over 72 to sit on that number going into the weekend. She is placed joint 24th.