Billy Horschel toppled Shane Lowry from the top of the leaderboard. On a windy Saturday, things moved fast at Royal Troon as the Irishman sat three shots back, relinquishing his overnight lead. Nevertheless, the Lowry family has made the trip to Royal Troon to give it an extra boost for Sunday. And no one is more excited than her daughter, Iris.

Lowry’s firstborn is on the range with her dad. Curiously, Billy Horschel was on the range gearing up for the final round at the same time. Spotting Iris, Horschel stopped for a moment and greeted the toddler. Then, the American International extended his hand, asking, “What’s your name?”

Iris caught the signal; Horschel wanted a ‘Big Smack.’ She waited, perhaps for her dad’s permission, pulled her hand behind, and then slapped hard on Horschel’s palm. While the eight-time PGA Tour winner was expecting it, he perhaps didn’t hope that much. Jokingly, Horschel pulled off his hand, pretending to be hurt. The Open shared the clip on their TikTok handle, captioning, “Flushed it.” She did, indeed. 

Notably, Iris was present during her father’s 2019 Open Championship triumph. However, it’s open to question how much she remembers it. At that time, Iris was only a kid of two who tagged along with her mother, Wendy Honner, all the time. “No matter what I shoot tomorrow, my two-year-old daughter will be there waiting for me,” Lowry said before teeing off on Sunday that year. Since then, the seven-year-old has been spotted on the greens several times. She currently hits the greens with her pop as well. 

Shane Lowry talks about golfing with his children

Notably, Iris has a little sister, Ivy, who turned two last September. Ivy, though much younger, doesn’t lag far behind in terms of golfing. Early this year, Lowry’s wife, Wendy, posted a clip of the two sisters hitting the greens. However, it was Iris who had to carry the bag, as Ivy was the ‘pro’ in the house. They were present at this year’s Masters as well. Lowry took them to the par-3 championship.

Lowry, in a more recent interview, revealed he never pushed Iris to pursue golf. Rather, she took a natural turn to the greens. “You know, I never tried to get her to go play. I wait until she asks me to go,” Lowry told Garrett Johnston of Beyond the Clubhouse podcast. She often plays golf after her school.

The former Open champion practices with her daughter and even records their swings. But it’s not because Lowry wants to teach her at a young age, but simply because Iris likes to do what her father does. Nevertheless, for the 37-year-old, the greatest pleasure is that she enjoys golf. Whether that would be her career or not is a matter of little concern for the Irishman.