Rónán MacNamara in Portrush
Northern Irish caddie Chris Selfridge hopes that Shane Lowry’s two-shot penalty can be a catalyst for a rule change after he described what happened as “terrible” while warning that it could cost somebody a golf tournament one day.
Lowry unknowingly caused his golf ball to move in the fescue rough on the 12th on Friday when a slow-mo zoomed camera replay showed that his practice swing brushed a strawy strand of grass despite appearing to be a considerable distance away from where the ball was lying.
Lowry’s par five became a double bogey seven after his round. The punishment of two shots appeared to be incredibly harsh.
“I think it’s terrible what happened. I think it’s absolutely awful,” Selfridge told Irish Golfer. “If someone wins a tournament someday and they are celebrating on the 18th green and told they get a two shot penalty because of something that couldn’t be seen to the naked eye is absolutely terrible.
“Shane is adamant that he didn’t think the ball moved. We know there is absolutely no advantage gained. Imagine the day this decides a tournament.
“First of all, it’s a two stroke penalty, it should be one stroke max, it shouldn’t even be a stroke! One is more than enough.
“One day it is going to ruin a golf tournament and hopefully what happened to Shane can be a catalyst for change. So, maybe it’s a good thing.”
There’s little that will surprise Selfridge these days after seven years as a tour caddie, but Lowry’s incident would have gone unnoticed had it not been a TV group. Selfridge had just finished caddying for Matti Schmid in an off broadway pairing with Corey Conners in the opening slot of round three.
Selfridge always planned to fly home from the Scottish Open last Sunday night, back to Moyola for what was supposed to be a week off, but German world number 78 Schmid earned the final spot in the 153rd Open at Royal Portrush.
“It was nice to get in,” said Selfridge who is sleeping in his home house this week. “Had a good week in Scotland, Sunday didn’t go particularly well, got a bit unlucky on the golf course then when we got in we got lucky a few other guys dropped shots so it’s great to get in.
“Excited to get in, pretty exhausted after Scotland, was supposed to be flying home Sunday night for a week at home but I was excited for the opportunity.
“I’m 45 minutes away so my wife was out there today, she came up here on Monday. Few friends and people I know were out there too which is to be expected when you’re not too far from home.”
A highly rated amateur, Selfridge entered the professional ranks in 2015 before persistent wrist injuries meant he had to shelve a promising career on tour three years later. This brought a period of confusion for Selfridge who was searching for his next move, before an opportunity to caddie for his close friend Michael Hoey on the DP World Tour presented itself.
Seven years later and the 32-year-old has established himself as a caddie with a flourishing reputation, previously looping for Ryan Fox and Tom McKibbin.
Now, he has picked up another potential young star in Schmid. The 27-year-old is enjoying an excellent season on the PGA Tour with four top-10s and is in contention to make the FedEx Cup playoffs, ranking 67th with the top-70 making the St Jude Championship.
Schmid props up the field this week on nine-over after a third round of 79 but the amateur silver medalist has impressed Selfridge this year.
“He’s done well, four top-10s in America, playing lovely. Few chances to win which is good. He’s an excellent player and just a shame to not be having a great week this week.
Selfridge has previously caddied at two Opens for Ryan Fox while he also caddied for an American player in 2019, the last time the Open Championship was held in Portrush.
“It’s brilliant. We’re all a bit biased if you are from here, it’s a great golf course, great memories playing here over the years, it’s such a pure test of golf. The new changes are brilliant, it’s an even better golf course now, first class.
“Rory and Shane deserve the support, what they have achieved in the game and what they have done for people and how much people enjoy watching them. It’s great to see them getting huge support and getting what they deserve at a home Open.”
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