Tuesday, September 17, 2019



SHANE LOWRY AWARDED HONORARY MEMBERSHIP OF EUROPEAN TOUR


Shane Lowry, pictured above with European Tour CEO Keith Pelley, has been awarded Honorary Life Membership of the European Tour in recognition of his Open Championship victory in July.

The Irishman finished six shots clear of Tommy Fleetwood at Royal Portrush to lift the Claret Jug in front of packed galleries at the County Antrim venue as the island of Ireland hosted the Open Championship for the first time since 1951.

It was Lowry’s maiden Major Championship triumph and came ten years after his unforgettable breakthrough victory as an amateur at the 2009 Irish Open at County Louth Golf Club in Baltray.

The 32-year-old currently leads the European Tour’s Race to Dubai, having also won the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship presented by EGC, the first Rolex Series event of 2019.

He was presented with his Honorary Life Membership by European Tour Chief Executive Keith Pelley ahead of the BMW PGA Championship – the season’s fourth Rolex Series event – which gets under way at Wentworth Club in Surrey on Thursday.

Lowry said: “It is pretty cool to receive this award. When you start playing golf when you're a kid you don't know how good you can be, or even when you start playing as a pro. I didn't know that I would get to this day so it's pretty cool.

“I've obviously joined a nice list of names, which is pretty good as well. My heart lies with The European Tour. I'll always be a member. I love coming back and I love playing in events like this. So it's an extreme privilege to receive this.”


Keith Pelley, Chief Executive of the European Tour, said: “Shane’s incredible victory at Royal Portrush will be remembered as one of the iconic performances in the Championship’s storied history.

“Shane is a terrific character and I think you when you look at the remarkable reception he enjoyed across the island of Ireland in the week following his win, in addition to the warmth and praise on social media globally, that shows you how popular he is in the game.

"He is also a wonderful ambassador for the European Tour, and is therefore a truly worthy recipient of this honour.”
Lowry, who has won five times on the European Tour, becomes the 56th person to be awarded Honorary Life Membership of the European Tour, 41 years after John Jacobs, the Founding Father of the European Tour, was the first to receive the accolade in 1978.

Full list of European Tour Honorary Life Members
1978
John Jacobs
1978
Bernard Hunt
1978
Dai Rees
1982
Peter Butler
1983
Seve Ballesteros
1983
Tony Jacklin
1985
Sir Henry Cotton
1985
Fred Daly
1985
Max Faulkner
1985
Bernhard Langer
1985
Sandy Lyle
1987
Sir Nick Faldo
1992
Ian Woosnam
1994
José María Olazábal
1995
Bob Charles
1995
Arnold Palmer
1995
Gary Player
1997
Colin Montgomerie
1998
Ernie Els
1999
Paul Lawrie
1999
Greg Norman
2001
Vijay Singh
2002
Retief Goosen
2003
Peter Alliss
2003
Bernard Gallacher
2004
Neil Coles
2004
Christy O’Connor
2004
John Panton
2005
Michael Campbell
2007
Angel Cabrera
2007
Padraig Harrington
2008
Trevor Immelman
2010
Martin Kaymer
2010
Graeme McDowell
2010
Louis Oosthuizen
2010
Tom Watson
2011
Darren Clarke
2011
Rory McIlroy
2011
Charl Schwartzel
2011
Lee Westwood
2012
Luke Donald
2012
Brian Huggett
2012
Tommy Horton
2012
Mark James
2012
Roger Chapman
2013
Dave Thomas
2013
Justin Rose
2014
Jack Nicklaus
2016
Peter Oosterhuis
2016
Danny Willett
2016
Henrik Stenson
2017
Sam Torrance
2017
Sergio Garcia
2018
Francesco Molinari
2019
Patrick Reed
2019
Shane Lowry
 
-ends-

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