Shane Lowry’s late collapse hands Cognizant to Nico Echavarria

Shane Lowry’s face flushed red. It wasn’t the effects of the Florida sun.

Standing on the driving par-4 16th at PGA National on Sunday afternoon, the Irishman looked dazed — suddenly unsure of what he was seeing or feeling — moments after he fired a long iron into the water, a shot so errant it barely skimmed dry land before disappearing with a splash.

Just a few minutes earlier, Lowry had held a three-shot lead A well-known classic in the Palm Beaches, in command of the tournament and ready to end a decade-long drought on American soil, in an event he had come close to before.

Instead, the swing marked the beginning of a shocking collapse.

The resulting 6—saved only by a nimble up-and-down bunker off the green—was the first of two consecutive double bogeys that cut his lead to one and then wiped it out altogether, opening the door for Nico Echavarria, playing the group forward to earn his third PGA Tour victory.

“To be honest, I didn’t think it would be possible with the three-shot lead he had,” Echavarria said. “But Bear Trap played harder today than any other three days. He was playing with the wind.”

That’s one way to look at it. But Lowry – a major champion and match hero – was not fooled by PGA National’s infamous closing. His wounds are self-inflicted.

“I’m obviously extremely disappointed,” Lowry said. “I had the tournament in my hands and I threw it. What more can I say? That’s twice so far this year. I’m getting good at it.”

This was a reference to January’s Dubai Invitational on the DP World Tour, where Lowry was tied for the lead when an airmailed wedge and a missed bunker shot on the final hole blew his chances. At PGA National, the unraveling was more prolonged — and more painful.

“I just couldn’t feel the clubface on the last three holes after my nail shot on 16,” he said. “It was weird.”

The turnaround was surprising for a player who had appeared completely in command. Lowry entered the final round Saturday at 63. Tied for the lead to start the day, he pulled ahead with a five-under five-hole stretch highlighted by an eagle on the par-5 10th.

It finally seemed time for Lowry to break into his adopted home of Florida, where his connection-born game has adapted well. He has four top-11 finishes in his last four starts at PGA National, including three straight top-fives. The most heartbreaking came in 2022, when he reached the 72nd hole needing a birdie to force a playoff, but fell short when a sudden flurry engulfed the course. It was hard to swallow. But Lowry drew a distinction between the disappointment of 2022 and the heartache of Sunday.

“I wouldn’t say it was a setback,” he said. “I’d say I beat myself up that day. But I beat myself up today.”

Before his round, Lowry had spent time on the court with mental coach Bob Rotella. The two reportedly talked about keeping things simple and staying calm. For most of the afternoon, it seemed to be working.

Then came the tee shot on the 16th, followed by additional misfortune on the par-3 17th, which brought the day into sharp relief. Playing a set ahead of Lowry, Echavarria pushed his putt, which flirted dangerously with the water but settled below the hole, leaving a relatively straightforward birdie putt. Taking advantage of the good break, Echavarria drained the putt and then learned from his tee box walking to the 18th tee that Lowry had found the water again with another wildly errant tee shot.

Echavarria finished with an even-par 66, completing a bogey-free round in one of the Tour’s toughest tests. It ended a great week both professionally and personally. On Friday, he and his wife were locked in a house nearby. They had also acquired a dog, a Bernedoodle.

Lowry, on the other hand, wasn’t closed to anything. And all he had won was another item on the list of tortured finishes, including last year’s Truist Championship outside Philadelphia, where he entered Sunday with the lead only to fade down the stretch and fall to Sepp Straka.

Needing a long-putting eagle on 18 to force a playoff at PGA National, Lowry dropped his second shot into a bunker and left with a par. His face was still flushed, his body language heavy.

“The hardest thing about today is that I’ve never made money from my four-year-old and she was waiting for me,” Lowry said. “I just wanted her for her today. I didn’t want her for her — I don’t care about anything else. I wanted her so bad. Just to see her little ginger hair flip down the 18th green would be the most special thing in the world. I thought I had her. I thought I was going to win.”

After Truist last year, Lowry had refused to meet the press. This time he faced every question, even the one he couldn’t answer.

What the hell happened?

Lowry shrugged. “Golf does strange things to you sometimes, and it certainly did to me today.”