Shane Lowry has hit another career milestone after qualifying for the Tour Championship Final for the first time.
Despite slipping out of the top ten, Lowry's impressive T13 finish at last weekend's BMW Championship was enough to see him qualify for the final in 13th position.
The Tour Championship which acts as the PGA Tour's final, sees the top 70 ranked players in the Fed-Ex Cup points standings enter into two play-off competitions which reduce the field to 30 golfers for the final.
However, unlike conventional golf tournaments all participating players do not start off on an even footing. With the initial 70-player playoff field whittled down to 30 golfers for the final, the best-performing golfers during the playoffs are given a stroke advantage for the final. This means the top-ranked player Scottie Scheffler will start at 10 under par for the weekend, the second placed at 9 under and so on and so forth.
While Lowry had looked set to take a top ten place in the standings, his performances over recent weeks mean that the Clara man will head into this weekend's final 13th in the standings, 3 shots under par and seven shots off the leader Scottie Scheffler.
4 August 2024; Shane Lowry of Team Ireland after acknowledges supporters after a birdie on the 13th hole during the men's individual stroke play final round at Le Golf National during the 2024 Paris Summer Olympic Games in Paris, France. Photo by Brendan Moran/Sportsfile
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Lowry in the hunt for big payday after Tour Championship qualification
Unlike the traditional Majors, qualification for the Tour Championship requires the delivery of consistently high-ranking performances across the whole season, with those who achieve high finishes in key events being rewarded the most points.
Lowry's qualification for this weekend's tournament will be the perfect way to cap off what is now Lowry's most successful season on the PGA Tour so far - with a win this weekend putting him up among the greats of golf.
If that wasn't enough motivation, there is a total playoff purse of 100 million dollars, including an outstanding 25 million dollars which goes to the Championship winner, meaning Lowry will be playing for one of the biggest purses of his career as he attempts to win the Fed-Ex Cup in Atlanta this weekend.
He'll be joined by friend and Olympic teammate Rory McIlroy, who starts one shot ahead of him tied for sixth at 4 under par. While it's Lowry's first venture to the final weekend of the Cup, McIlroy is one of its most revered contestants, having won it three times previously in 2016, 2019 and 2020.
Coverage of the tournament begins on Sky Sports Golf at 6 pm this Thursday the 29th of August.
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