Lowry ready for another big year; Koepka to test injured knee in Abu Dhabi

Shane Lowry enjoyed an exceptional season last year which was kick started by his early win at the Abu Dhabi Championship in January and the popular Irishman is hoping for more of the same in 2020.

The defending champion went on to win his first major championship, the British Open at Royal Portrush in July, and climbed from 75th in the official world golf ranking to his current position of 19th.

The 32-year-old has already shown he means business this year — there were pictures on social media of blisters on his hands as he put in 13-hour stints in the range and gym in the new year — and he finished second in the Hong Kong Open last week.

“It was obviously my best year-to-date. I couldn’t really envisage what happened given my form coming into Abu Dhabi. It is a really, really difficult tournament to win, and it obviously kick-started an unbelievable season,” said Lowry.

“There’s no doubt that it had a positive impact on my life and my career, and mentally my attitude going forward. It’s hard to probably put your finger on how much of an influence it had on my season, but obviously it did.

“Anybody who plays this game knows that a lot of form is built on confidence, and that’s what I gained from here last year.”

Lowry said his main goal for the year would be to get into the Olympics and the European Ryder Cup team, and he planned to pick and choose events to give himself the best chance.

“I don’t write my goals down. I have it in my head what I want to achieve this year, and the main thing for me is to make that Ryder Cup team, and I’ve kind of set my schedule and everything out to do that.

“My schedule is pretty much similar to what I played last year. I think I need to really look at and pick courses that suit me and that I’ve done well on in the past and make sure I go back there.

“I am playing a lot of golf, and I don’t have that many breaks, but you know, that’s just the way this season is. I’m not adding anything. Obviously, when I play, I’m going to have to play well.”

Lowry has been paired with world number one Brooks Koepka and the two-time Abu Dhabi champion and world No.10 Tommy Fleetwood for the first two rounds.

After three months rehabilitating an ‘excruciating’ left knee injury, Koepka returns to competition at this week’s Abu Dhabi Championship still not completely recovered but keen to test the state of the joint.

Koepka has not played since slipping on concrete during the PGA Tour’s CJ Cup in South Korea in October, and says his recovery is still a work in progress.

“It doesn’t feel the same as my right,” the four-time major champion, speaking of his left knee, told reporters.

 “It probably won’t for a while, but it does feel stable, which leaving Korea and all the way up to about a month and a half ago, it didn’t feel stable.

“I’ve had problems with it since March. Dealt with it the whole year ... I had stem cell done on my knee and it felt fine and then in Korea, just slipped, re-tore it and the kneecap had moved into the fat pad, which was excruciating.”

Koepka subsequently missed the Presidents Cup and did not start practising again until around Christmas time. His appearance this week was not a certainty until quite recently.

Yet he says that playing hurt — he was also out for three months with a wrist injury two years ago — is nothing new and he will not make excuses.

“I don’t want to say this was kind of up in the air, but we weren’t 100 pe rcent on it too long ago,” he said.

“But I don’t think anybody’s ever operating at 100 percent. Everybody’s dinged up a little bit. Nobody wants to hear an excuse so ... just get on with it and go play. I mean, I won with it, so I don’t see any issue with it.”