LOS ANGELES: Shane Lowry will have to wait to hear himself announced to fans as the defending Open champion, finding himself not at Royal St. George’s this week but in Dublin, Ohio. “I wouldn’t say it’s bittersweet, but it is strange,” Lowry said on Wednesday (Thursday in Manila) as he prepared to tee it up on the US PGA Tour’s Memorial Tournament at Muirfield, Village. The cancellation marked the first time since 1945 that the Open Championship’s Claret Jug won’t be awarded. “I miss being announced on the first tee as defending champion, but I’m sure I’ll get that next year,” Lowry added. Nor will the Safeway Open, which will officially kick off the 2020-21 season September 10-13 in Napa, California.

Source: Manila Times July 16, 2020 16:42 UTC