Advertisement League of Ireland Horse Racing TV Listings GAA Fixtures The Video Review Sport meets news, current affairs, society & pop culture Rugby Weekly Extra Dive into all the news and analysis 3 times a week The Football Family Weekly insights from the week’s big talking points Advertisement More Stories Good start: Seamus Power, left, and Shane Lowry (file photo).Alamy Stock Photo FreePGA Tour Seamus Power and Shane Lowry start brightly at Valspar Championship Darkness halted play in Florida, but the Irish duo had finished their opening rounds. 8.52am, 21 Mar 2025 Share options SEAMUS POWER AND Shane Lowry both made bright starts as darkness halted play at the Valspar Championship on the PGA Tour. While a handful of players were still on the Innisbrook Resort’s Copperhead course in Palm Harbor, Florida, when play was suspended, the Irish duo had finished their opening rounds. Power opened his weekend with a round of 70, which leaves him three shots off the lead on one-under overall. Lowry is a shot further back after his opening 71. You can follow the leaderboard here> Power started on the back nine, shooting a bogey on the 16th and birdie on the 17th. He also birdied on the first and fifth, before finishing with a bogey on the ninth. The Waterford man is among 16 golfers tied for 23rd, with Xander Schauffele, Sepp Straka and Viktor Hovland for company. Lowry, meanwhile, bookended his front nine with birdies on the first and ninth, while he had bogeys on holes five and 17. The Offaly native is tied for 39th with 22 others, four off the lead on even par. The lead is shared five ways, with American trio Keith Mitchell, Jacob Bridgeman and Ricky Castillo, Germany’s Stephan Jaeger, Sami Valimaki of Finland at the top of the leaderboard on four-under. Another three players in the clubhouse are three-under following a tough, windy day in which the early starters had a distinct advantage. Keith Mitchell in five-way tie for the lead.Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo Mitchell, who carded seven birdies and three bogeys in a four-under par 67, says he’s still learning from his agonising last-round collapse in the event last year. Advertisement Given the conditions, he said he couldn’t be too upset to close his round with back-to-back bogeys that dropped him from six-under into a share of the lead. He three-putted his penultimate hole, the eighth, then found the right rough off the tee on the way to a bogey at the ninth. “All in all I kept it together,” he said. “Number eight was playing really hard today, and nine the wind just off left I couldn’t get it started far enough left and made bogeys there. “But you take those two out of the round and sprinkle them somewhere else. I’m feeling good.” Mitchell started last year’s final round at Innisbrook with a two-shot lead but carded a 77 that left him tied for 17th as Peter Malnati snapped a nine-year title drought. Asked how he moved on from that, Mitchell said he didn’t. “I still think about it,” he said. “It’s still definitely in the back of my mind and I want it to stay there, hopefully for the rest of my career to just motivate me to remember what it feels like when you let those kind of nerves get in your way. “A round like today feels like the opposite of that,” added Mitchell, who is trying to add a second tour title to his 2019 Honda Classic crown. Jaeger, who claimed his first title at the Houston Open last year, closed with back-to-back birdies, getting up and down from a bunker to pick up a stroke at 18 and join the leading group. He said he was actually aiming for the bunker after his wind-whipped tee shot found the right rough. “To be honest with you that’s the only play I had,” he said. “I knew the bunker shot wasn’t terribly difficult, but obviously making that is a bonus. I would have taken par any day of the week.” – © AFP 2025 With reporting from Emma Duffy Viewcomments Send Tip or Correction Embed this post To embed this post, copy the code below on your site Email “Seamus Power and Shane Lowry start brightly at Valspar Championship”. Recipient's Email Feedback on “Seamus Power and Shane Lowry start brightly at Valspar Championship”. Your Feedback Your Email (optional) Report a Comment Please select the reason for reporting this comment. Please give full details of the problem with the comment... This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic. Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy before taking part. Leave a Comment Submit a report Please help us understand how this comment violates our community guidelines. Damaging the good reputation of someone, slander, or libel. Racism or Hate speech An attack on an individual or group based on religion, race, gender, or beliefs. Trolling or Off-topic An attempt to derail the discussion. Inappropriate language Profanity, obscenity, vulgarity, or slurs. Advertising, phishing, scamming, bots, or repetitive posts. Please provide additional information Thank you for the feedback Your feedback has been sent to our team for review. Leave a commentcancel Access to the comments facility has been disabled for this user View our policy ⚠️ Duplicate comment Post Comment have your say Or create a free account to join the discussion seamus power Shane Lowry News in 60 seconds FreeAthletics Kate O'Connor firmly in the medal hunt after magnificent start at World Indoors Butler triple-double leads Warriors past Raptors as Steph Curry injured 53 mins ago Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton takes stunning pole for Chinese Grand Prix sprint Freeteenage dream Luke Littler hits nine-dart finish en route to Premier League win in Cardiff Na Fianna and Sarsfields dominate club teams of the year talking point Can Ireland's man of the match solve their biggest problem? Packie Bonner is angry at League of Ireland clubs over botched FAI plan... but it is misplaced David Sneyd As it happened Bulgaria v Ireland, Nations League playoff recognition Two Irish players feature in Six Nations team of the tournament 'He energised everyone he was near. It's a huge loss' - F1 legend Eddie Jordan dies aged 76 Jeremy Loughman returns from injury for Munster's clash with Glasgow more from us Investigates Daft.ie Property Magazine Allianz Home Magazine The 42 Sports Magazine Money Diaries The Journal TV Journal Media Advertise With Us About FactCheck Our Network FactCheck Knowledge Bank Terms & Legal Notices Terms of Use Cookies & Privacy Advertising Competition more from us TV Listings GAA Fixtures The Video Review Journal Media Advertise With Us Our Network The Journal FactCheck Knowledge Bank Terms & Legal Notices Terms of Use Cookies & Privacy Advertising Competition © 2025 Journal Media Ltd Terms of Use Cookies & Privacy Advertising Competition Switch to Desktop Switch to Mobile The 42 supports the work of the Press Council of Ireland and the Office of the Press Ombudsman, and our staff operate within the Code of Practice. You can obtain a copy of the Code, or contact the Council, at https://www.presscouncil.ie, PH: (01) 6489130, Lo-Call 1800 208 080 or email: mailto:info@presscouncil.ie Report an error, omission or problem: Your Email (optional) Create Email Alert Create an email alert based on the current article Email Address One email every morning As soon as new articles come online Sign in or create a free account To continue reading create a free account Or sign into an existing account