Shane Lowry got off to a solid start on day one of the PGA Championship at Aronimink on Thursday.
In fact, ‘solid’ probably does Lowry’s round an injustice. Two-under par around Aronimink was a very good score on day one, and it leaves him just one shot adrift of the leaders.
The 39-year-old Irishman has experienced a disappointing season so far in 2026, and has more missed cuts than top-10 finishes to his name.
Shane Lowry suffered heartbreak when he lost his lead at the Cognizant Classic during the final three holes back in March.
Lowry then endured a nightmare final round at The Masters as he tumbled down the leaderboard on Sunday at Augusta National.
And he hasn’t really recovered since. So his opening round at the PGA Championship on Thursday was a very welcome one indeed.
Shane Lowry felt ‘uncomfortable’ on day one at the PGA Championship
Lowry may have posted the joint second best round of the day on Thursday, but he wasn’t entirely happy with his round.
He responded when asked to sum up his opening-round 68.
“Yeah, I was a little bit nervy at the start, to be honest,“ Lowry admitted.
“I was, like I struggled, I felt uncomfortable out there for a while. If anything, that kind of focuses me more, and I — you know, you really just worried about — you know, not worried, but one shot at a time, and you’re really just kind of focusing on the next shot at hand.
“I felt like I did a really good job of just staying patient, trying to make birdies when I hit good shots. And if I hit bad shots, just not getting too flustered and just kind of managing my way around the course nicely.
“I just think I managed myself around the course very well today. I didn’t feel comfortable out there at all, but maybe that, I don’t know, maybe that helped me.“
Shane Lowry’s stats from day one at the PGA Championship
Lowry will be hoping to improve as the week goes on.
Starting off with a round of 68 while not having his best stuff is definitely a huge positive for the Irishman.
Lowry didn’t drive the ball as well as he usually does on Thursday at Aronimink.
He was ranked 75th in strokes gained putting.
However, his chipping and approach play was extremely solid, and he was ranked inside the top 28 in both of those categories.
It will be very interesting to see how Lowry plays on Friday after admitting that he really struggled on day one, despite shooting 68.
