2 weeks Ago By [email protected] (Aaron Morris)
Shane Lowry couldn't help but burst into laughter at his own commentary on Rory McIlroy's performance in the Zurich Classic's first round. Fresh from securing his career Grand Slam with a Masters triumph , McIlroy returned to PGA Tour's team event in New Orleans after sitting out last week's RBC Heritage. Despite a patchy start in the team-based tournament, McIlroy's off-kilter form led to some straight-talking from his teammate, Lowry .
Speaking about the inaugural round on Ten Golf's YouTube channel, McIlroy said: "Yeah, I mean, Shane got off to a really good start. I didn't do anything. "Shane joked I could have got an extra couple hours in bed if I wanted to.
" Lowry was caught on camera chuckling over the insight, while McIlroy himself couldn't help but crack a smile. Lowry's impressive birdies on three out of four opening holes on the back nine of the course, as well as his par-saving magic on the 14th, combined with McIlroy’s later birdie and eagle, highlighted a day of mixed fortunes for the duo, reports the Mirror US . Discussing their performance and what lies ahead, McIlroy said: "I played a bit better coming in, and yeah it was okay.
"We felt like we left a few shots out there but we were just saying that the two foursomes days on Friday and Sunday here are the important days in this tournament, and it's important for us to obviously post a good score tomorrow." McIlroy and Lowry wrapped up their round sitting at eight-under-par, meaning they will approach the foursomes format on Friday from T28. Meanwhile, Isaiah Salinda and Kevin Velo currently head the pack, with an overall leading score of 14 under.
Lowry also took the time to speak on his team goals for the tournament, explaining: "Like Rory mentioned over there, the two foursomes days in this tournament are huge. "That's what separates the field and hopefully we can go out tomorrow and shoot a good score and work from there at the weekend." Renowned as the only team event of the regular PGA Tour schedule, the Zurich Open pits pairs against each other in both fourball and foursomes formats.
In the fourball, players on the same team play independently, and the better score is recorded. To put it simply, if one player putts for birdie and the other ends up with a par, the birdie is what goes on the scorecards. Foursome clashes, meanwhile, involve alternate play within the team.
One golfer tees off and then his partner plays from where the ball lands, alternating after every shot. The players continue to rotate until the hole is complete, and a score is marked like traditional stroke play. At the Zurich Classic, fourballs are played on the Thursday and Saturday, while foursomes are played on the Friday and the Sunday.
Lowry and McIlroy return to the course with hopes of defending their title from the 2024 Zurich Classic, in which they bested Chad Ramey and Martin Trainer in a tense playoff, after both teams finished the tournament with a total score of 25-under-par..
