Shane Lowry’s late fall gives Cognizant to Nico Echavarria

Shane Lowry’s face was red. It wasn’t the effects of the Florida sun.

Standing on the shore of the 4th at PGA National on Sunday afternoon, the Irishman looked stunned – suddenly unsure of what he was seeing or hearing – for a moment after blasting a long iron into the water, the shot ricocheting across dry land before disappearing with a splash.

Just minutes earlier, Lowry had grabbed three goals at the Cognizant Classic in the Palm Beaches, leading the tournament and poised to end a decade-long drought and a stroke on the American circuit in an event where he had previously come agonizingly close.

Instead, the swing marked the start of a shocking fall.

The 6-hole — aimed only up-and-down on the greenside — was the first of two consecutive bogeys that cut his lead to one and then completely erased it, opening the door for front-runner Nico Echavarria to claim his third PGA Tour victory.

“Honestly, I didn’t think it was going to happen with the three leads he had,” Echavarria said. “But Bear Trap played harder today than the other three days.

That’s one way to see it. But Lowry — a major leaguer and a game-playing hero — was unfazed by PGA National’s infamous closing stretch. His wounds were self-inflicted.

“Obviously I’m very disappointed,” Lowry said. “I had the competition in my hands and then I threw it away, what else can I say? It’s been twice this year. I’m successful in it.”

That was a reference to January’s Dubai Invitational on the DP World Tour, where Lowry was tied for the lead when a wedge sent into the air and a bogey shot on the final hole blew his chances. At PGA National, the unveiling was long — and painful.

“I didn’t feel the clubface facing the last three holes after my tee shot on 16,” he said. “It was weird.”

The change was surprising for a player who was already in full control. Lowry entered the final round fresh off Saturday’s 63. Tied for the lead to start the day, he moved to a five-under par lead, highlighted by an eagle on the par-5 10th.

It seemed time for Lowry to break out in his adopted home of Florida, where his born links game has become well practiced. He has four top-11 finishes in his last four PGA National starts, including three consecutive top-10 finishes. The most painful came in 2022, when he came to the 72nd hole needing a birdie to force a playoff but failed when a sudden argument broke out on the fairway. That was hard to swallow. But Lowry made the difference between 2022’s disappointment and Sunday’s heartache.

“I wouldn’t say that was a stumbling block,” he said. “I can say that I was beaten that day.

Before his round, Lowry spent time on the range with mental coach Bob Rotella. The two are said to have talked about keeping things simple and staying relaxed. For most of the afternoon, it seemed to work.

Then came a tee shot on the 16th, followed by another disaster on the par-3 17th, bringing the day to a sharp end. Playing one club ahead of Lowry, Echavarria pushed his tee shot, which flirted with the water but landed below the hole, leaving a straight birdie putt. Catching a nice break, Echavarria drained the putt and learned from his caddy on the way to the 18th that Lowry had found the water again with another elusive shot.

Echavarria finished with an even-par 66, completing a bogey-free round in one of the Tour’s toughest tests. It’s been a great week both professionally and personally. On Friday, he and his wife had locked up a nearby house. They also got a dog, a Bernedoodle.

Lowry, by contrast, wasn’t holding anything back. And all he got was another thing on the list of victims, including last year’s Truist Championship outside of Philadelphia, where he entered Sunday with the lead until he fell to Sepp Straka.

Needing a long eagle shot on 18 to force a playoff at PGA National, Lowry hit his second shot on the hole and walked away with par. His face was always changed, his body was down.

“The hardest thing today is that I’ve never won in front of my four-year-old, and he was waiting for me,” said Lowry. “I just wanted it for him today. I didn’t want it – I don’t care about anything else. I wanted it so bad. Just to see his ginger hair come down the 18th green would have been the most special thing in the world. I thought I had it. I thought I was going to win.”

After Truist last year, Lowry refused to meet the media. This time he faced all the questions—even the ones he couldn’t answer.

What happened?

Lowry shrugged. “Golf does strange things to you sometimes, and it certainly did to me today.”