How’d Shane Lowry’s First Round at Oakmont Go? After a Few Holes, He Called it Quits

Just looking at his scorecards, you’d think Shane Lowry's first event at Oakmont Country Club went pretty well. He posted rounds of 68-70-65 over the first three days of the 2016 U.S. Open and entered the final round with a hefty four-shot lead.

Of course, his final 18 holes weren’t so good. He limped home with a 6-over 76 and finished in a tie for second, three shots behind winner Dustin Johnson.

The Irishman did get a taste of how difficult the Pittsburgh gem was going to be on the Sunday before the tournament started. He told the hilarious story after signing for a first-round 3-under 69 on Thursday at the Memorial Tournament.

"My coach was with me and we teed off on 10. We got around to 14, which is up beside the clubhouse, and I walked in,” Lowry said with a smile. “And I sat there in the locker room going, I have no idea how I'm going to play golf around this place.”

I’ve been watching some YouTube golf over the last week or so to get a feeling for the golf course, how it’s going to play, and what the winning score is going to be in a few weeks, and the place just looks impossible. To be honest, I don’t even know if I would want to play that track in U.S. Open conditions.

But these guys are pretty good. I’m sure they’ll still be able to shoot some scores. Me, on the other hand? I don’t know if I could break 100.