Shane Lowry remains on the charge at the Canadian Open
Shane Lowry added a second-round 68 to his opening 64 and is currently in a share of fifth spot on eight under at the RBC Canadian Open.
Starting on the tenth, Lowry, the 2022 runner-up, bogeyed the opening hole but recovered to post three birdies in his round and remains very much in the mix.
Leading the way on 12 under is American Cameron Champ after a 66, with joint-leader overnight, Thorbjørn Olesen, three shots further back following his round of 70.
Rory McIlroy is out on the course and will hope for more consistency than was the case in round 1, where he mixed the good and the bad en route to a one-over 71.
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RTÉ News
an hour ago
- RTÉ News
Rory McIlroy still searching for 'missing piece' off the tee as driver issues continue
Rory McIlroy admits there are still "learnings" to take after he missed his first cut at the RBC Canadian Open on Friday since the Open at Royal Troon last July. The Holywood man carded a quadruple bogey, a double and four other bogeys in an eight-over-par round that left him languishing 21 shots behind halfway leader Cameron Champ and admitted his "concern". McIlroy was hoping for more ahead of next week's US Open and felt the new driver choice was going to solve the issues off the tee that began when his club was deemed 'non-conforming' in a random check at the PGA Championship earlier this month. "Of course it concerns me. You don't want to shoot high scores like the one I did today. "Still, I felt like I came here obviously with a new driver thinking that that was going to be good and solve some of the problems off the tee, but it didn't. "Going to Oakmont next week, what you need to do more than anything else there is hit fairways. Still searching for the missing piece off the tee. "Obviously, for me, when I get that part of the game clicking, then everything falls into place for me. Right now, that isn't. Yeah, that's a concern going into next week." Despite his concern going towards Oakmont, the Masters champion still believes he can take something from the somewhat disastrous second-round 78, where he only managed to find four fairways. "I think there's still learnings that you have to take from a day like today, "Even though the last two days didn't go the way I wanted them to, there are still things that I can take from it, and there are still things that I can learn. "I'm gonna have to do a lot of practice and a lot of work over the weekend at home to try to at least have a better idea of where my game is going into next week." McIlroy revealed that missing the cut will allow him to test different drivers and adds that he will prioritise speed off the tee over hitting fairways, which may be a tactic carried into the US Open if the issues can't be remedied. "I went back to a 44-inch driver this week to try to get something that was a little more in control and could try to get something a bit more in play. "But if I'm going to miss fairways, I'd rather have the ball speed and miss the fairway than not. "I said to Harry going down the last, this is obviously the second time this year I've tried the new version [of driver], and it hasn't quite worked out for me.
Irish Examiner
4 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Shane Lowry has spring in his step ahead of big Irish summer
SHANE Lowry is eager to get back to his rural retreat. An unholy early start for Wednesday's Pro Am at the Canadian Open was, for him, a godsend. He pulled and dragged a quartet of plodders around nine holes in quick time and is about to get out the gap before lunch is even considered, never mind served. But first, he has a story about a dog. Two dogs actually. 'Shane finally caved' revealed Wendy Lowry when the clan welcomed a new member last October. Daughters Iris and Ivy were instantly smitten and played a part in giving the very good boy his name, Paddy. Lovely. Only one small snag — one of dad's best human friends has the same name. It helps that Paddy Harrington is not the type to get easily offended. But that doesn't mean he'd let it slide altogether. This is exclusive subscriber content. Already a subscriber? Sign in Subscribe to access all of the Irish Examiner. Annual €120€60 Best value Monthly €10€4 / month Unlimited access. Subscriber content. Daily ePaper. Additional benefits.
Irish Examiner
11 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Rory McIlroy has 'concerns' as he misses Canadian Open cut by country mile
Rory McIlroy's US Open preparations went spectacularly awry as yet another happy hunting ground turned on him in vicious fashion, the Masters champion missing the cut by a country mile in a Friday horror show at the RBC Canadian Open. Twice a winner in Toronto, McIlroy purred midweek about how this tournament has served as such a reliable springboard to the year's third major in recent years. The 2025 edition didn't follow suit in any way, shape or form, instead ejecting him out at the halfway mark as he missed a cut in North America for the first time in over two years. McIlroy admitted he'll be leaving with deep concerns, particularly after a driver change didn't go according to plan at all. 'Of course it concerns me. You don't want to shoot high scores like the one I did today,' said a visibly frustrated McIlroy. 'I felt like I came here obviously with a new driver thinking that that was going to be good and solve some of the problems off the tee, but it didn't. 'Obviously going to Oakmont next week, what you need to do more than anything else there is hit fairways. I'm still searching for the sort of missing piece off the tee. Obviously for me, when I get that part of the game clicking, then everything falls into place for me. Right now that isn't. Yeah, that's a concern going into next week.' Needing a second-round revival after a sluggish opener at TPC Toronto, McIlroy instead plumbed the depths with an utterly woeful 8-over 78, low-lighted by a quadruple bogey eight. Somehow, it could have been worse, a couple of late birdies saving him from finishing double digits over par. To blame it all on the bedding-in period for his new TaylorMade driver would be to ignore all the other parts of his game which coughed and spluttered. He left the course on 9-over with just three others in the 153-strong field below him. With the notoriously challenging Oakmont hosting next week's US Open, there's a laundry list of work-ons. 'I think there's still learnings that you have to take from a day like today. Look, even though the last two days didn't go the way I wanted them to, there's still things that I can take from it, and there's still things that I can learn,' he insisted. 'I'm going to have to do a lot of practice and a lot of work over the weekend at home and try to at least have a better idea of where my game is going into next week." How disorienting this must all feel, mere weeks removed from his drought-breaking, career grand slam-clinching victory at Augusta in April. In truth, it looks as though McIlroy hasn't yet figured out what golf will look like now that he achieved his holy grail. At the PGA Championship last month, hosted at a Quail Hollow course which he has made his own, he was also fitful and frustrated. At least there he made the cut. It was clear his trip north would be a short one after the disaster came early Friday afternoon. A wild second shot out of the right rough on the 5th hole ended up with a lost ball and from there little improved as he carded an ugly quadruple eight. Another bogey at the 8th left him on 6-over with the cutline disappearing over the horizon. 'I didn't hit enough fairways. I felt like I drove the ball better yesterday than I did today. I think, once I made that big number on the front nine, I was always behind the 8 ball a little bit. After nine holes, I sort of resigned myself to the fact that I'd be flying home to Florida tonight,' McIlroy said. It got worse, another wild drive on 10 the spark for another bogey and then a wet tee shot on the short 11th resulting in a double. Even the late brace of birdies was offset by one more bogey in between on the 17th. Look at the strokes gained data and there were only flashing red lights for the Holywood man. Most worryingly, he was 148th of 153 off the tee. After the driver he used to win at Augusta was deemed non-conforming in a pre-PGA check at Quail Hollow, McIlroy has been testing out a new big stick. So far it's a bit of trial and a lot of error. 'So I went back to a 44-inch driver this week to try to get something that was a little more in control and could try to get something a bit more in play. But if I'm going to miss fairways, I'd rather have the ball speed and miss the fairway than not,' he explained. 'I was saying to Harry going down the last this is the second time this year I've tried the new version, and it hasn't quite worked out for me. So I'd say I'll be testing quite a few drivers over the weekend.' The Irish challenge will instead be carried by Shane Lowry who followed Thursday's stellar 64 with a steadier two-under 68 to put himself in a halfway clubhouse tie for sixth, four shots back of leader Cameron Champ.
