For Irish fans, one of the biggest "what ifs" of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics was how close both Shane Lowry and Rory McIlroy came to medalling in the golf event.
The Irish team was one of the strongest in the competition, with two Major winners flying the flag at the Kasumigaseki Country Club.
After the first three rounds, things were looking strong, with McIlroy just three shots off the lead and Lowry one shot further back.
The final day was to bring heartbreak for both. McIlroy ultimately finished in a seven-way tie for 3rd place but lost out in the bronze medal play-off. An even par for Lowry in the final round saw him finish five shots off the medal spots.
It was a bittersweet ending after an impressive showing from both, who one would expect will once again represent Ireland at next summer's Olympics in Paris.
Speaking to Balls.ie and the Irish media at the launch event of Amgen as the new sponsor of the Irish Open, Shane Lowry said that he hopes to use the disappointment of Tokyo to fuel a medal drive at the 2024 games.
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Shane Lowry on Tokyo 2020 disappointment
31 July 2021; Shane Lowry, left, and Rory McIlroy of Ireland walk away from the first tee box after teeing off during round 3 of the men's individual stroke play at the Kasumigaseki Country Club during the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympic Games in Kawagoe, Saitama, Japan. Photo by Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile
Shane Lowry said that he was almost surprised by the fact he found himself in medal contention at his very first Olympics - but that he was ultimately left "dejected" by missing out on what he knows would have been a special medal:
Yeah, the one thing I remember about Tokyo was I had a bit of a chance going into the Sunday for a medal and I had a bad day Sunday, and I was quite dejected after it.
I didn't think I would. You know, not that it didn't mean a lot to me, but it was my first time playing it and so yeah, it's very high up the list.
And I know how much Olympic medals mean in this country, and I think that would just be something else, like the Ryder Cup was this year.
Lowry is right in the mix to qualify for next summer's games. 60 men's players will qualify for the golf event, with the top 15 in the world qualifying automatically. One spot is assured for the host nation France, while spots are provisionally reserved to ensure that each continent is represented at the tournament.
Once those conditions are met, the remainder of the qualification places will be divvied out to players from 16th onwards in the world rankings, with a two-player limit per country.
With Rory McIlroy currently in second place in the rankings, and Lowry in 19th, it looks likely that we will see the same duo take to the course once more in Paris - and Lowry is hoping to push for a medal at Le Golf National:
It was like another thing on my list of my career achievements that I wanted to do and I think the Olympic medal, you know, obviously a gold medal will be amazing, but a medal in general would be great.
I think I'm pretty high off the list in qualification at the minute and hopefully I can kick on and make sure I qualify, and then go there and give myself a chance.
It's on a golf course that I know as well. I've not necessarily done great around there, but I do feel like it's a golf course that could suit me at the minute. I haven't played there in quite a while. So yeah.
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