Shane Lowry says he's relishing competing in this week's Open Championship and is hoping to give Irish fans "something to shout about" come Sunday evening.
The Offaly man failed to defend his WGC Bridgestone Invitational title and threw away his lead on the final day of the US Open last month at Oakmont.
However, Lowry is confident heading into this year's penultimate major and says he has been enjoying the course at Royal Troon thus far.
"Yeah it's nice, I mean we're not playing the prevailing wind today," he told Brad Hale. "This is my first time playing here so I believe we're paying a bit of a different wind direction.
"The golf course looks nice, it's in great condition. There's some really nice holes on it. I've just finished the Postage Stamp there which is my first experience of that. It's a nice hole, it feels pretty easy today but I imagine when the pressure is on on Sunday it'll be a little bit different. All in all, it's pretty nice."
Shane Lowry and two-time Open winner Padraig Harrington chat during today's practice round at Royal Troon. Image: Peter Byrne / PA Wire/Press Association Images
The weather and wind speed is expected to play a big part in the tournament, with many golfers adjusting to conditions by competing in last week's Scottish Open at Castle Stuart. Meeting favourable conditions is something that will be out of the 29-year-old's hands.
"You do want to get the good side of the draw. If there is going to be a bad side of the draw, it's always going to be a lot tougher. You have to take what you get but obviously you can't help if you're on the good side of the draw because the weather can play a big factor here.
"But we're in Scotland, you know? It's a mild day today and we're still in getting 15mph or 20mph wind. If the wind gets up it could be very difficult."
Lowry has looked at other Irish major winners for inspiration and explained that The Open means a lot to people across Ireland.
"I just love the atmosphere of the Open. Being from Ireland, I grew up watching The Open and watching Padraig [Harrington] winning The Open. To be able to play in this tournament and people being able to come over and watch you... You look at the set-up in The Open championship and it's amazing.
"The show the R&A put on this week is fantastic. Royal Troon is a relatively small piece of land as well so I'd expect the atmosphere to be pretty good as well.
"I'm looking forward to getting out on Thursday and experiencing the atmosphere. I imagine we're pretty close to Ireland here so I imagine there will be a good few Irish people over here and I can give them something to shout about."
Speaking at the press conference on Wednesday he also hoped he would not be included in any "s*tty groups".
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