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Lowry wins Portugal Masters by one, adds pro win to previous amateur title

By PGA.com news services
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Lowry wins Portugal Masters by one, adds pro win to previous amateur title

VILAMOURA, Portugal -- Shane Lowry of Ireland won the Portugal Masters on Sunday after a final-round 5-under 66 to edge out England's Ross Fisher by one stroke with a 270 total.

Lowry started the round four shots off the lead, but he made an eagle on the par-4 11th to move ahead of overnight leader Bernd Wiesberger. He then traded the lead with Fisher before taking advantage of Fisher's bogey on the 16th with a birdie on the 17th hole.

Fisher had one last chance after Lowry bogeyed the 18th, but the Englishman had a three-putt final-hole bogey to allow Lowry to claim his second career European Tour win.

Lowry shot 14 under through the four rounds on the Oceanico Victoria Golf Course to become only the second player to win on the European Tour as both an amateur and a professional.

The 25-year-old, who captured the Irish Open in an amazing Europe Tour debut three years ago, joins Spaniard Pablo Martin, who won the 2007 Portuguese Open in his amateur days and then the Alfred Dunhill Championship in South Africa two years later.

Shot of the day from Lowry was a 7-iron into the hole for an eagle two at the 11th. Lowry was one ahead after adding birdies at the 15th and 17th, but prepared himself for a playoff after driving into the sand and bogeying the last for a 66 and 14 under par total.

Former Ryder Cup star Fisher was in the group behind and from the fringe of the green left his long birdie attempt -- a putt to win the title -- five feet short and then lipped out.

Unlike his maiden victory, which earned him nothing because of his amateur status, Lowry this time picked up a check for just over $480,000 in addition to the trophy.

"I cannot believe this," he said. "I can't explain how I feel really. It's a dream come true -- I'm over the moon.

"Everyone was referring to me as the fella who won the Irish Open as an amateur, but now I've won such a prestigious event I don't know what to say."

Nothing might match the atmosphere in torrential rain on the day he triumphed at County Louth, but he still had plenty of vocal support at Oceanico Victoria.

"It was like playing in Ireland," he said. "It was crazy. It was great."

Lowry was still three behind at the turn, but birdied the 10th and then saw his approach to the next land a foot short of the flag and hop in.

"I thought then this could be my day and thankfully it is," he said. "We had a long wait on the 12th tee which was good, I had time to compose myself."

He went ahead for the first time when Wiesberger drove into the lake and dropped a shot on the 11th, but Fisher then produced three birdies in a row to take over at the top. The 31-year-old was chasing his first success for more than two years, but bogeyed the short 16th to fall behind again and could not get back on terms.

Wiesberger found more water on the long 17th and by bogeying the last as well allowed New Zealander Michael Campbell to take third place on his own.

Campbell, the 2005 U.S. Open champion, has suffered an horrendous slump since beating Tiger Woods at Pinehurst. He fell outside the world's top 1,300 at one point and only two seasons ago made just one cut in 19 starts. This was his best finish for four years and the last time he had four rounds in the 60s was nine years ago.