Shane Lowry is on the lookout for a new caddie with news that the 2019 Open champion has split with his bagman Brian “Bo” Martin.
Lowry cut a frustrated figure over the past few weeks in the UAE, failing to register a point at the Hero Cup, before unravelling in the final round of the Abu Dhabi Championship and missing the cut at last week’s Dubai Desert Classic.
In news first reported by Independent.ie, Lowry’s management team Horizon Sports Management confirmed the split with Martin, with sources stating that the pair came to the mutual realisation that their ‘competitive spark’ is no longer there.
Martin first began working with Lowry at the Portugal Masters in 2018 and the bearded brothers in arms hit it off right away, building a rapport that saw Lowry break a barren spell in Abu Dhabi the following January, before capturing a maiden Major title at Royal Portrush.
“Bo has been incredible the last year,” Lowry said at the time.
“He started caddying for me about September last year, and just when I started to play well again. So he’s just, like, he’s brought a new lease on life to me. He is so thrilled.
“He was unbelievable today. He kept on my back all day, kept talking to me, he kept in my ear. I kept on telling him how nervous I was, how scared I was, how much I didn’t want to mess it up, how that I can’t — all I could think about was walking down 18 with a four- or five-shot lead. And lucky I got to do that.
“But, yeah, he was great at keeping me in the moment today. He’s been great for me. Like I said, you see my results since then have been good.
“I’ve known Bo a long time. He’s now become a very good friend of mine. And to be able to share it with someone so close was very special.”
Despite enjoying another precious victory last September at Wentworth, sources have also claimed following Lowry’s disappointing results during the Middle East swing that there was a loss of “chemistry” between the pair. It’s said that both Lowry and Martin had been contemplating the move for several weeks, and while not the outcome either wished for, the pair will remain friends.
Lowry’s bag is now sure to be a hot ticket item amongst caddies worldwide, with the world number 22 facing into a bumper year, highlighted by his goal of being part of a Ryder Cup revenge mission in Rome. Last year on the PGA Tour alone, Lowry earned $3.6 million. There’s not a looper in the world who’d turn their nose up at a percentage of that.
Lowry is set to return to action at next week’s $20m Waste Management Phoenix Open.
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