Shane Lowry admitted that the fear of letting down the people of Ireland spurred him on to a maiden major success at The Open last summer at Royal Portrush.
On the week when Lowry should have been defending the Claret Jug at Royal St George's, only for the event to be cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Irishman appeared on the Sky Sports Golf podcast to reflect on his history-making victory.
Lowry broke the course record with a third-round 63 to give him a commanding four-shot advantage heading into the final day, where he initially struggled to cope with the thought of disappointing the Irish crowd on home soil.
"It was horrible to be honest!" Lowry told the Sky Sports Golf podcast. "I was up at like six o'clock, having not got to sleep until twelve or one. I barely ate breakfast, I didn't have any lunch and I basically didn't eat that day, I was just sick with nerves.
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"If you put me there at Augusta or at the US Open again or a big tournament, I don't think I would be as nervous there, but I just knew there was so much stake for me that day in Portrush. A home Open, with the whole country cheering me on, I felt like if I didn't win that day, that I would've been a huge let down.
"Some people would say that I wouldn't be, but I can only imagine the stories that would've been written about me afterwards. That type of stuff totally goes through your head on a Sunday morning, things like 'imagine the headlines on the Monday morning if I don't win today'.
"I said to my coach that it's pretty much going to be one of the best days of my life and career or one of the worst, so I'm just going to have to go out there and win."
Lowry came through horrendous weather on the final day to post a level-par 72, with a birdie at the 15th giving him a six-stroke advantage over playing partner Tommy Fleetwood going into the closing holes.
"It was just the most incredible thing," Lowry added. "I'll probably spend my whole career chasing that feeling again and who knows if I'll ever get to experience it.
"One thing I know is that I've got to experience it once already and I'm very fortunate that I have! I love the fact that I got to do something that you can only dream about. To do it where I did and how I did was just incredible.
"No matter what happens for the rest of my career, I'll always have Portrush. I'm very ambitious and want to be very successful, but when I look back when my career is finished and I pick one tournament out that I really wanted to win, it's probably going to be that."
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