Shane Lowry revealed his anguish at missing out on victory at the Cognizant Classic in front of his young daughter.
Lowry had looked on course for a commanding win at Palm Beach Gardens, only to surrender a three-shot lead down the stretch at the tournament in Florida.
He hit his tee shots into the water on the 16th and 17th holes to record costly back-to-back double bogeys.
That allowed Colombia’s Nico Echavarria to close out a two-stroke victory on 17 under, with Lowry slipping back into a three-way tie for second on 15 under.
Lowry’s eldest daughter Iris was waiting on the final green for his Open Championship victory in 2019 and he was disappointed his youngest daughter Ivy was denied similar celebrations.
“The hardest thing about today is that I’ve never won in front of my four-year-old,” Lowry said.
“She was there waiting for me and I only wanted it for her today, I didn’t care about anything else, I wanted so bad to see her little ginger head running out on 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.”
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Highlights from the final round of the Cognizant Classic at Champion Course in Florida
Lowry added: “I just couldn’t feel the club face on the last three holes after my tee shot on 16, it was strange.
“It’s very disappointing, this is going to be hard to take.”
It was yet more heartbreak for Lowry at the event having led until the latter, rain-hit stages in 2022 and also failing to convert a final-day advantage into victory two years ago.
This time he began the day with confidence as he built on his overnight share of the lead.
He birdied the fifth and then chipped in for another birdie at the ninth before really charging his round with an eagle at the 10th.
A superb approach left him with a five-foot putt for another birdie at the 12th and he holed out from 20 feet on 13 to move to 19 under par and three shots in front.
After steady pars on 14 and 15, he looked to be cruising but then everything began to unravel as he found the water from the 16th tee and could only manage a six. He found another lake on the 17th and, with Echavarria taking advantage to birdie and reach 17 under, his challenge was done.
Lowry also went into a bunker on the last and could only scramble a par, leaving him to sign for a two-under-par 69 and wonder what might have been.
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