ARNOLD PALMER INVITATIONAL

March 7, 2024

Shane Lowry

Bay Hill Club and Lodge

Quick Quotes

Q. Anyone looking at your record here --

SHANE LOWRY: It's horrific (laughing). My best finish here is tied 67th or something.

Q. So what happened?

SHANE LOWRY: I have no idea (laughing). I played here six times, I missed the cut five times. Last year I made the cut and shot 81 on Saturday and finished tied 67 or something around there. Going out there with very low expectations today. I knew I was playing well. Golf's a funny game. Just had it under control today. I can give you, going back on my career around this place, I can, last year was my first year in a few years to play it, so I feel like I was a bit of a different golfer then. But, yeah, it's one of these places where some people love it. I've struggled with it over the years. I come here, it's a nice place to come, it's a good, obviously a great tournament, a huge tournament, and I'm very happy with that today. Maybe that's the kind of score I need to shoot around here to just give myself the confidence to go out and play my game around here.

Q. What did you say in your letter for the sponsor invite?

SHANE LOWRY: Well, I'm very fortunate, I built up a great relationship with Mastercard over the years. I'm an ambassador, so, yeah, very fortunate to get an invite that way. I'm, obviously, happy to get the invite, and hopefully I can take advantage of it now.

Q. Is there one thing or maybe two things that seem to have been the most problematic that have gotten you on this course?

SHANE LOWRY: I putted better today probably than I ever have around here. It's only one day. I'm not taking anything for granted going out there tomorrow. I'm still going out there and trying to hit the first fairway and trying to hit the first green and try and hole my first putt. It's just, golf as simple and as hard as that. I'm not going to get ahead of myself. I think, obviously, we have huge tournaments coming up, and I did say after last week, it will be a nice time to find a bit of form with this week, THE PLAYERS, and obviously the Masters only around the corner. Yeah, we'll just see what happens over the next few days.

Q. How easy did things seem between 10 and 13?

SHANE LOWRY: It's funny, when you're out there playing and you get on a run like that it does feel pretty easy. Then you start -- I spoke about this with my coach this week -- I said, This is the type of place where you get on a run and it feels easy, but then you get on a run the other way and start making bogeys, it feels like you're never going to make a par out here again. It's one of them courses, it's very difficult. Look, I probably never have seen it play as easy on an afternoon as I did today. Obviously, we got a bit of rain on Tuesday night, we might have got a little bit last night, that helped us a little bit. It's normally one of the firmest golf courses we play, and I'm sure over the weekend it's going to firm up and become really difficult, but obviously 66 is a really good start.

Q. When did you start to appreciate Florida golf?

SHANE LOWRY: Yeah, I remember coming over here in my first tournament in Florida was the Honda Classic in maybe 2014, around then. I remember, like, I hated the grass, I really struggled. Bermuda grass is not for me, I thought. When I moved down to Florida and started playing more and more, week in, week out on the stuff, it's, I figured out a way to do it and, yeah, I quite enjoy Florida golf now. It's probably, like I would say that I know the course was set up easy last week, but it's probably the most difficult stretch of tournaments we play all year, the Florida swing. So, yeah, that's the type of golf I like.

Q. What year did you move to Florida?

SHANE LOWRY: Full-time, only a couple of years ago, but we've been coming there since 2015.