Shane Lowry and Rory McIlroy are both delighted with the remarkable rise which Seamus Power has had in the last year.
Over the weekend, the Waterford man placed joint third at the Sony Open in Hawaii, a finish which saw him jump into the world's top 50 golfers for the first time.
"I've known Seamus a long time," Lowry said ahead of the Abu Dhabi Championship.
"I played amateur golf with him. We're the same age. What he's done and the perseverance he showed over the last ten or 15 years is incredible. He's getting the rewards now and I'm delighted for him.
"He's obviously played some great golf in the last few weeks and the last few months and got his first win on the PGA Tour last year, and I did say it at the end of last year, I don't feel like he gets the credit he deserves for what he's out there doing.
"I think he's starting to get that credit now. I actually just said it to Paddy [Harrington] yesterday, and Rory - we were playing a practice round and I said, 'It would be nice to have another Irishman at Augusta'. So I'm sure that's his goal over the next few months and hopefully he can be there."
In March of last year, Power was ranked 463rd in the world. He's now 49th, just one spot behind Lowry. Should Power still be in the top 50 by the end of March, he will qualify for the Masters.
"He's played great," said McIlroy.
"Seamus has done it a very different way than a lot of us have done it in terms of going to college in the States and then basically staying over there and doing everything on the PGA Tour.
"But he's done fantastically well. The last year, really, last six months, he's really excelled and he's edging towards the Top-50 in the world, I'm not sure, I think he is in the Top-50 this week which is an amazing achievement.
"There's so many avenues or ways to do it, but for him to it on the toughest tour in the world and the deepest fields, he's done it the hard way,
"I'm happy for him. I remember being in the Irish under 15 panel with Seamus, I remember playing the Munster Under 15s with him. It wasn't at West Waterford, it was like Gold Coast or something like that.
"I've known Seamus for going on 20 years at this point. So I'm happy for him, happy that he's playing so well and it will be great to see him play in some of those bigger events this year."
Picture credit: Sportsfile
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