Shane Lowry has a message for his haters: "I'm not going to disagree with Luke"

Shane Lowry says he believes Europe have the best 12 players for the Ryder Cup as he defended Luke Donald's decision to pick the Irishman.

Ben Smith

06 Sep 2023

Shane Lowry has a message for his haters: "I'm not going to disagree with Luke" — Shane Lowry has a message for his haters: "I'm not going to disagree with…

Shane Lowry has claimed Europe have the best 12 players on their side as he defended Luke Donald's decision to pick the out-of-form Irishman.

Lowry was one of Donald's six captain's picks that were announced on 4 September.

GolfMagic have already taken a look at what we believe the pairings are likely to be for the Ryder Cup in a few weeks' time now that both teams have been confirmed.

As for Lowry, he won the first Ryder Cup qualifying event at last September's BMW PGA Championship but has since struggled for form.

His anger was evident when he was filmed snapping an iron around his neck en route to a missed cut at the 151st Open at Royal Liverpool.

European Ryder Cup Team 2023: Player Guide, Past Form, Stats and Top Scorer Odds

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How many matches do you think you Shane Lowry will play at the Ryder Cup?
— GolfMagic (@GolfMagic) September 4, 2023

Some have criticised Lowry's inclusion. Golf writers, fans and pundits have expressed dismay that Ludvig Aberg has been selected.

Aberg, 23, has never played in a major championship after only turning professional in June.

That's not a problem for Rory McIlroy though as the Ulsterman heaped praise on the Swede ahead of the Irish Open.

As for Lowry, he had only one message for the haters:

"I'm not going to sit here and disagree with Luke Donald. It was his decision at the end of the day, if he thinks that somebody else is better for this team.

"If you look at the way the team was picked, there's not many players playing that weren't in the top 12, myself included. And that's why you have six picks, so you have the chance to pick the 12 best players.

"I personally think that's the right way to go about it and I think we have the best 12 players from Europe coming to play this Ryder Cup, and I think we're in form."

He continued:

"A lot of players are in very good form, as you've seen over the last few weeks, and I think we're going to give it a great go this year.

"I'm very confident in my own ability, and I know what I can bring. My form probably has not been the greatest, but in some of the bigger events I've played some of my best golf and there's nothing bigger than the Ryder Cup.

"Hopefully I can go to Rome and show people what I'm made of."

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Birdie putt
Classic reaction
Well played, Shane Lowry | #Ryder Cup pic.twitter.com/NxbJdRNsHG
— Ryder Cup (@rydercup) September 25, 2021

Lowry won one point from three matches as Padraig Harrington's side suffered a record 19-9 defeat at Whistling Straits two years ago.

He nearly qualified automatically but in the end needed a pick from Harrington. Justin Rose was the player to miss out at his and has now battled back to represent Europe once again.

It was anticipated that Poland's Adrian Meronk was likely to have been chosen this year given that he has already won at the venue where the Ryder Cup will be played.

Lowry said of Meronk:

"Well, people have their opinion. Adrian has had a great year, and obviously he's unfortunate to miss out, but somebody has to miss out. I'm not going to sit here and disagree with Luke Donald. It was his decision at the end of the day, if he thinks that somebody else is better for this team than he was."

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