Shane Lowry was hit with a brutal ruling at The Open.
World's No. 18 Golfer's Punishment During The Open Turns Heads Over Alleged Phantom Ball Issue originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
To say that Shane Lowry may not be enjoying his time in the second round of The 153rd Open Championship at the Royal Portrush Golf Club this year, may be an understatement.
The Irishman had already gone viral for firing off an expletive-laced rant on the par-4 11th hole after shanking his drive, and the very next hole ended up emerging as the controversy of the tournament thus far.
After his tee shot found the rough, Lowry took his approach to strike the ball. He then fired off a practice swing before deciding he needed to reassess things with his caddie. While Lowry appeared not to notice, his ball ever-so-slightly moved after his practice swing.
Naturally, he played the ball and made par on the hole to salvage a rough approach. However, once he got to the 15th hole, an R&A rules official alerted him that he possibly committed an infraction.
It was eventually deemed a two-strike penalty, and now social media is at odds and debating the ruling.
BREAKING
— GOLF.com (@GOLF_com) July 18, 2025
Shane Lowry was assessed a two-stroke penalty for this incident on the 12th hole.
According to @ToddLewisGC The R&A spent nearly 20 minutes reviewing the video with Lowry, Scheffler and Morikawa after the round.
pic.twitter.com/iJEAuP6gXM
"So stupid," said one fan.
"Really stupid, if clearly no intent behind it then no reason a penalty should be assessed," suggested a second.
"Tough break… but not a terribly difficult decision. I don't think he even knew it moved," added a third.
"Such a ridiculous rule," commented another.
"BS…and an awful break," chimed in another.
"very harsh," quipped one fan.
When addressing the incident when speaking to the media, Lowry made it clear he didn't love the ruling.
"I was in there with the rules official and wasn't arguing my case, but I'm disappointed that they don't have more camera angles on it," Lowry said.
Lowry finished the day with a score of 72, and saw the penalty bump his score from 2-under to even-par for the tournament.
Related: Scottie Scheffler Earns New Nickname as He Sits Atop The Open Leaderboard
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 18, 2025, where it first appeared.
Category: General Sports
