Shane Lowry holds firm at Irish Open amid Doonbeg’s glorious madness

LOWRY THE LEADER: Shane Lowry in the rough on the 17th hole. Pic: Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile.

One minute you are turning to look at the convoy of Secret Service vehicles preparing for the US president’s arrival, the next you are watching a woman be struck by a golf ball in the back.

Welcome to Doonbeg on this wild Saturday.

Thankfully, the unfortunate woman who bore the brunt of Joe Dean’s wayward drive on the third was unhurt, the padding of her jacket proving sufficient protection.

The Sheffield man was profusely apologetic and handed over a signed glove before stitching his second onto the green. From that point on, the day became more surreal and more absorbing.

Rory McIlroy lost a ball on the same hole despite a packed gallery tracking his every move. As he stood on a dune in search of it, Air Force One roared over his head.

Before Donald Trump disembarked amid a procession of Chinooks, Marine One, gardaí, security personnel and assorted officialdom, he wanted to make a grand entrance: the president was here.

A sense of anticipation continued to grow. It sucked so much of the course towards that peculiar crossroads where the second green meets the 17th tee box, with the third just a short walk away.

The chosen helipad location was on the other side of the road, with a perfect view from the towering dune that loomed over the second. Robert MacIntyre wandered by and complimented the vantage point: must be the best view up there.

What it did to this already extraordinary golf tournament was remarkable. Some of the greatest players in the world hit shots while swathes of spectators had their backs turned. Shane Lowry was briefly delayed on the fairway and eventually played on while the helicopter’s rotors thumped through the air.

Meanwhile, a curt instruction constantly rang out: “NO!” It came from an overworked steward making increasingly desperate attempts to stop patrons jumping over the rope and scaling the towering dune. Our more selfish concern was for those of us below should a clumsy journalist slip from the summit and become a human bowling ball.

Before long, Trump, his family and the wider entourage were positioned beside the final green to watch the field come in. Meanwhile, all over the West Clare venue, there was glorious madness.

Lowry’s round with Haotong Li and Jacob Skov Olesen became a thriller. On the eighth, both of his playing partners drained clutch eagle putts. Lowry stood tall to make a birdie and maintain his lead. The tenth became borderline comical courtesy of Rule 9.4b.

Shane Lowry prepares his shot onto the second green. Pic: Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile.

Li’s ball had landed in the shallow water that filled the ditch beside the green. He bent down to inspect it only to send ripples across the surface, with one causing the ball to move. That accidental movement meant he then had to place the ball back in the original spot in an exceptionally harsh penalty. The man issued so, so many four-letter expletives.

As a lengthy consultation with a rules official unfolded, Lowry tried to offer some advice before walking away with a bewildered expression. Watching over the entire ordeal was a collection of spectators sitting in the bucket of a Kramer loader, with the construction vehicle parked in the adjacent field. They had patio furniture and cans of Bulmers to complete the scene. Forget military escorts and Chinooks for company, what more could you want?

The nine hole one-putt run down the stretch will rightly earn due plaudits, but it fails to capture the trouble that he flirted with during that stretch. This is the peculiar cruelty that is golf. Even though he has endured some tough competition this year, Lowry has said all week he felt like he wasn’t playing too badly. It is about breaks.

He was initially in difficulty when he found the rough on the tenth. On the par-3 14th, the ball tumbled down into a valley corner that has swallowed countless balls over the previous three days.

Lowry found the native area on the 17th. “Shane needs you to stop moving,” pleaded a marshal as spectators kept advancing along the pathway, oblivious to the fact that the Offaly man had to hit across them. His caddie had a simple instruction: “The red spot,” on the giant scoreboard beside the green.

Soon after came a contentious comment. His drive on the 18th squirted left towards people on the far side of a crossing. “Fore, fore,” he bellowed, before adding an ill-advised line.

“They deserve to get hit,” he said.

It was a needless remark but, given we were positioned in his immediate vicinity at the time, it is worth noting that his facial expression would suggest it was a misjudged attempt at humour rather than an eruption of frustration. Of course, that does not mean he should have said it. Just that it was a bad joke.

Having made par and celebrated with a clenched fist pump, the evening became even better when his nearest chaser Olesen dropped a shot on the last.

He heads into the final day looking to bridge a 17-year gap since he won this tournament, this time as a favourite and a home favourite. At the same time, some recent Sundays have brought heartache and this wacky Saturday underlined one inescapable truth.

Anything can happen.