Shane Lowry was eight shots behind the leader when he teed off more than an hour and a half before the final group of the third round of the PGA Championship. He was one shot behind when he entered the clubhouse.
That’s because the Irishman shot a 9-under 62 at Valhalla on Saturday, tying the record for the lowest round and lowest score in a major.
Xander Schauffele achieved a similar mark on Thursday, tying his previous record of 62. But his score was also the first time he went 9 under in a major round (Valhalla is a par 71, but he had previously been a par 70).
Well, Schauffele has friends.
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Ireland’s Shane Lowry reacts to a birdie on the 14th green during the third round of the 2024 PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville on May 18, 2024. (Andrew Reddington/Getty Images)
Lowry challenged history, stretching out the par-5 18th in three strokes with about 10 feet left to play for an unprecedented 61 in the majors.
But his putts never fell apart and he made par, tying him with Schauffele (Thursday, 2023 U.S. Open), Rickie Fowler (2023 U.S. Open) and Branden Grace (2017 British Open Championship). .
This putt tied him with Schauffele for first place in the tournament at 14 under par, but Lowry established himself as more than just his second major win. At the time of publication, he was tied for second with 2020 PGA Champion Collin Morikawa.
He couldn’t believe it when he didn’t lose, but he seemed happy when he realized that the tie wasn’t too bad.
Shane Lowry of Ireland reacts to a birdie with caddy Darren Reynolds on the 14th green during the third round of the 2024 PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville on May 18, 2024. (Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
Tiger Woods misses the cut after suffering two triple bogeys in a three-hole span at the PGA Championship
Lowry made par on the first hole, then birdied the next four holes, alternating pars and birdies from the sixth hole to the ninth, entering the turn at 29.
He had birdies 13, 14 and 17 en route to a bogey-free round. He sank putts totaling more than 161 feet, including back-to-back birdies of 37 feet, 4 inches and 32 feet, 6 inches on Nos. 13 and 14.
Lowry’s best finish at the PGA Championship was a tie for fourth in 2021, when Phil Mickelson won at Kiawah Island, making him the oldest major winner in history. Lowry also tied the lowest round he shot at the 2021 Northern Trust at Liberty National in Jersey City.
His only major win came at the 2019 British Open Championship at Royal Portrush.
Ireland’s Shane Lowry reacts to a birdie putt on the 13th green during the third round of the 2024 PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, May 18, 2024. (Andrew Reddington/Getty Images)
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With Sunday’s victory, he became the 21st multiple winner of the PGA Championship and the first since Brooks Koepka won for the second time in 2019, defending his title the year before.
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