The SHANE thing again

LOWRY LOVING IT ALONGSIDE PAL TOMMY AS HE SHOOTS A 64 ONCE MORE

- BY EUAN PARSONS

SHANE LOWRY felt he and Ryder Cup teammate Tommy Fleetwood fed off each other as the pair shot opening rounds of 64 to sit in a five-way tie for the lead at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.

Having also shot a first-round 64 in the company of Fleetwood in India last month, the Offaly man was once again on song with the reigning FedEx Cup champion by his side. Lowry made nine birdies and a single bogey on Thursday, while Fleetwood carded eight birdies in a spotless round to join Kazuma Kobori, Richard Sterne and Adrien Saddier on eight under par.

“It was nice” said 2019 champion Lowry, who also played with Rasmus Hojgaard in round one.

“I was pretty excited when I saw the group, my pairing today, and it was nice to go out there with the boys.