Shane Lowry admitted his final round of the 153rd Open was "one of the most enjoyable" following a closing 66 at Royal Portrush.
The Irishman, who claimed the 2019 Open Championship at the County Antrim venue, saw his challenge for a second Major Championship fail to materialise, but he produced a brilliant Sunday to entertain the home crowd.
He bounced back from a bogey at the second with a stunning tee shot at the third for a tap-in birdie before adding another gain at the fourth.
Lowry finished the front nine with a hat-trick of birdies and rolled in his sixth of the day at the 12th from 29 feet. He almost had a fairytale ending as he his hit the pin with his chip for birdie at the last, but it stayed above ground.
It meant Lowry finished the tournament in the red numbers as he reflected on playing on home soil once again.
"It was nice today. I get off to a nice start. The crowds are amazing. They got behind me the whole day. Yeah, it was probably one of the most enjoyable rounds of golf I've had in a while," Lowry said.
"Obviously I would have liked to do better this week, there's no doubt about that, but it is what it is. I tried my best. I gave it everything I could and it wasn't to be.
"I'm very lucky to achieve what I did in 2019. I never dwell on it and I don't want to live off it, but to be able to go out and win this tournament on this course was a really cool thing to do.
"It probably made me want it too much this week. I really wanted to give myself a chance this week."
Lowry now has his sights on the Ryder Cup in September, where Team Europe aim to defend their crown at Bethpage Black in New York.
This will never get old… so lucky and grateful to have such amazing support all week. Nice to finish on a high. As always Portrush and @TheOpen is the best tournament in the world. ☘️ pic.twitter.com/5gQoppQKvd
— Shane Lowry (@ShaneLowryGolf) July 20, 2025
"It would be up there with everything else," the Irishman said. "I can't speak for other players, but personally I put it way up there preparing, getting ready, trying to make the team, trying to go there and win.
"There's probably not many days go by that I don't think about it. I think, yeah, it would be up there, and I would love to do something like that.
"For me now the next two months, obviously the play-offs are huge, but my focus and my work will be getting out of bed every morning to prepare for hopefully going to Bethpage and winning that Ryder Cup.
"It's a big thing for us Europeans and it's a big thing for me. Major season is over now, so everything turns towards the Ryder Cup."
