Advertisement We need your help now Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open. You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough. If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it. One-off amount I already contribute Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you. An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more. Investigates Investigates Money Diaries Daft.ie Property Magazine Allianz Home Magazine The 42 Sports Magazine TG4 Entertainment Magazine The Journal TV Climate Crisis Cost of Living Road Safety Newsletters Temperature Check Inside the Newsroom The Journal Investigates The Explainer A deep dive into one big news story Sport meets news, current affairs, society & pop culture have your say Or create a free account to join the discussion Advertisement More Stories Shane Lowry.Alamy Stock Photo The Open gets worse for Shane Lowry as he's hit with vomiting bug hours after two-shot penalty Lowry struggled to a third-round 74 and revealed afterwards he was struck by illness. 4.52pm, 19 Jul 2025 Share options reports from Royal Portrush SO SHANE, APART from the irritating questions about drinking from the American media, the stone-cold putter, the squalls of bone-drenching rain, the two-shot penalty and now the vomiting bug. . . how’s your Open Championship week been? It was on Saturday at Portrush in 2019 that Lowry put together the greatest round of his career, a 63 during which he told his caddie they must enjoy the closing two holes and after which he clamped one hand on the Claret Jug. But 313 Saturday afternoons later and the Golfing Gods have wreaked their vengeance on Shane Lowry. Their retribution may not be swift. . . but it will be brutal all the same. On a day of benign conditions, Lowry was bumped miles down the leaderboard with a third-round card that ended with a 74 but did not adequately express his torture. The picture of him lying flat on his back on the ninth fairway as he and playing partner Jon Rahm waited for the green to clear was much more evocative. Lowry awoke at 2.30am this morning with a stomach screaming sedition, realising it was his turn to contract a vomiting bug that had careened through his household all week. A few hours earlier, the R&A had left him with another kind of sickening feeling, as they gave him a two-stroke, post-round penalty for unwitting moving his ball during a practice swing on the 12th hole. Lowry insisted he did not know his ball had moved: otherwise he would have replaced it. The impassive tournament organisers pinged him one shot for not replacing his ball and another shot for then playing it from the wrong position. It meant sliding back to even-par and an earlier start than expected, depriving him of a chance to watch some of the Lions’ Test against Australia. But then he awoke even earlier than planned. Advertisement “I haven’t eaten today yet”, sighed Lowry in a press engagement that zapped the last of his diminished energy. “I tried to get a protein drink down me after eight holes, and I felt like throwing up all over the place. Yeah, it’s been a tough day, but I’m not going to make excuses. I played poorly today and obviously had a bad finish. “I woke up at 2:30 with cramps in my stomach. I know we have it in the house. [Daughter] Ivy had it a couple of days ago, [wife] Wendy had it yesterday. Me and [daughter] Iris have it today. “Honestly, every bathroom I went in and tried to throw up, I couldn’t. It’s just such a bad feeling. I think lack of energy towards the end maybe did me in. Look, I don’t want to make excuses. It is what it is.” Lowry had to take a penalty drop on the second hole to make bogey at the first par-five of the day, and from there his putter refused to return any yield on investment, missing birdie looks on seven and eight before holing from 25 feet for par after his brief rest on nine. He found birdies on 10 and 13 before the round blew up, hooking left off the 14th tee on his way to a triple-bogey seven. Another bogey on seven put the tin hat on things. “I felt like I ground it out really well to get to one-under for the day through 13", he said. “Then a bad shot on 14 and a little bit of a bad break as well. “The annoying thing for me today is I didn’t get to enjoy today as much as I would have liked. Saturday at The Open in your home country: I should enjoy it a lot more than I did, just because of how I felt.” He wasn’t in the mood to talk any more about last night’s penalty, though did say the reaction among his fellow players has been one of sympathy. If there’s an upside to all of this torment, then Sunday surely can’t be any worse. Plus, there’s a silver lining to being hit with the virus midway through the Open. “It will be gone by the holidays next week. So at least that’s a plus.” Written by Gavin Cooney and originally published on The 42 whose award-winning team produces original content that you won’t find anywhere else: on GAA, League of Ireland, women’s sport and boxing, as well as our game-changing rugby coverage, all with an Irish eye. Subscribe here. View 4 comments Send Tip or Correction Embed this post To embed this post, copy the code below on your site Email “The Open gets worse for Shane Lowry as he's hit with vomiting bug hours after two-shot penalty ”. Recipient's Email Feedback on “The Open gets worse for Shane Lowry as he's hit with vomiting bug hours after two-shot penalty ”. 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 Newly created accounts can only comment using The Journal app. This is to add an extra layer of security to account creation. Download and sign into the app to continue. 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 Shane Lowry the open 2025 the trials of shane lowry News in 60 seconds Man (70s) dies after being found in ‘unresponsive' state on local road in Co Cork 19 mins ago Over 30 people dead after tourist boat capsizes in Vietnam's Ha Long Bay Santa Monica Boulevard Car rams Los Angeles crowd, injuring close to 30 people, with three in 'critical condition' The Daily Poll Are you going to watch tomorrow’s All-Ireland hurling final? Thousands attend pro-Palestinian rally in Dublin as ‘Palestine Action’ protesters arrested across UK Man accused of assault at IPAS centre ordered not to make extremist posts or attend rallies Politics Gossip Lucinda Creighton: 'Our national conversation is all around things that are irrelevant' Maria Delaney reports from Glenties Viral Video CEO facing cheating allegations placed on leave after viral Coldplay moment Dublin City Council Property tax has been hiked in Dublin - if you own a house, here's how much you'll pay next year Remains of disgraced former Bishop Eamonn Casey removed from Galway Cathedral crypt Man with same name as CEO facing cheating allegations says he ‘wouldn’t be caught dead at Coldplay’ more from us Investigates Daft.ie Property Magazine Allianz Home Magazine The 42 Sports Magazine TG4 Entertainment 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 Journal 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