Shane Lowry: If there is an Irish Open and I am allowed play, I will definitely play

I would 100 per cent play a rescheduled Irish Open in the now vacant September Ryder Cup slot – if the government restrictions allow for it.

If there is an Irish Open and I am allowed play, I will definitely play.

The Irish government will have to judge whether public opinion will allow for International golfers arriving, playing and departing given how well the Irish public has done to contain the spread of the pandemic over the last few months.

The US Open is due to end on the 20th September, the week before a rescheduled Irish Open could be slotted in and I was planning to come home for a couple of weeks after that Major anyway, if the quarantine restrictions allow for it.

Obviously if players have to quarantine in the US first and then Ireland when they arrive, it’s not going to be very practical for many. But if everything gets the green light, I’d love to be teeing off as the reigning Open Champion on home soil.

I was so looking forward to going to the Irish Open at Mount Juliet as the reigning ‘Open Champion’, teeing off in front of a home crowd, so I’d still love to experience that if possible.

The buzz I’d get at the first tee – it would be awesome.

I’ve got a lot of work to do between now and the end of September first though and will just have to put my head down and work as hard as I can to see where it leaves me. Hopefully I can have a good showing in the first re-arranged Major of the season – the USPGA Championship – at TPC Harding Park, San Francisco during the first week of August and then the US Open at Winged Foot GC in mid-September.

I’m down the FedEx Cup rankings at the moment and I really want to get into those FedEx Cup play-off places too.

Even though I’m able to go about my business and play my sport and do my job, we’re in a pretty much full lockdown doing that, so it has been a long few months. I’m looking forward to going home for a bit if I can.

So if the Irish Open was to go ahead in September that would slot in perfectly. I’d definitely go back and play.

I wouldn’t miss an Irish Open.

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