Shane Lowry: I grew up watching Harrington so to be his teammate is pretty cool

I’m looking forward to the Zurich Classic tomorrow. It’s a team event and it’s good fun. I played last year with Paddy (Harrington) and we had a good laugh and we played quite well as well. I’m happy to be going to New Orleans this week, I’m looking forward to it.

Paddy seems to be playing decent golf after his injury and I obviously have a little bit of form coming in off the back of the RBC Heritage as well so hopefully, we can just go and have a bit of craic and enjoy it and see where we finish at the end of the week.

I enjoy the team play element of it. It is a bit more craic and you’re pulling for each other. Every other week of the year you’re on your own out there and you’ve got no one to lean on whereas it’s different when you have a partner.

For me, when you’re playing in a team event with Padraig Harrington, who I’ve grown up watching playing golf and winning majors, to be able to compete in a team event with him is great. That’s the way I look at it.

I think it’s cool for me to be able to just do that.

I picked him to play with last year and he had to pick me this year because I didn’t have enough to get into the event at the start of the year. I’m sure there will be some Ryder Cup talk this week with it being a team event and with Paddy around but I know quite well that I’m going to have to make that team on merit.

There will be no mates’ picks.

But from September onwards for the next 18 months, the Ryder Cup will be my main focus.