Koepka–Lowry Team Up

Brooks Koepka and Shane Lowry arrived at the Zurich Classic as one of the tournament’s headline teams after Rory McIlroy skipped the New Orleans stop. (pgatour.com) The PGA Tour listed Koepka, back in the event for the first time since 2019, alongside Lowry in the 80-team field at TPC Louisiana. The Zurich Classic is the tour’s only official team event, with four-ball in the first and third rounds and alternate shot in the second and final rounds. (pgatour.com) Betting markets quickly treated the pairing as a contender, with Koepka and Lowry posted at +1550 among the notable teams for the week. Other prominent pairs in the field included Matt and Alex Fitzpatrick, plus defending champions Ben Griffin and Andrew Novak. (themirror.com) (pgatour.com) Lowry brought recent Zurich history with him. He won the 2024 tournament with McIlroy in a playoff over Chad Ramey and Martin Trainer, then returned with McIlroy in 2025 and finished tied for 12th in their title defense. (pgatour.com 1) (pgatour.com 2) Tournament organizers announced the Koepka-Lowry partnership on March 30, calling it one of the marquee combinations in the field. Lowry entered with a 2024 Zurich title and a runner-up finish at the 2026 Cognizant Classic; Koepka entered after four top-20 finishes in his previous five starts, including a tie for 12th at the Masters. (zurichgolfclassic.com) (pgatour.com) McIlroy’s absence changed the look of the event because he had become part of its recent identity. After winning the Masters on April 12, 2026, he was not listed among his 2026 Zurich entrants, and the PGA Tour’s field release instead centered Lowry’s new pairing with Koepka. (espn.com) (pgatour.com) The event’s format helps explain the interest in a makeshift duo. Four-ball rewards birdie-making because each player uses his own score, while alternate shot punishes mistakes because teammates play one ball in turn. (pgatour.com) That left Koepka and Lowry as a pairing built on pedigree more than shared reps: Koepka owns five major titles, and Lowry owns one major plus the most recent Zurich trophy among the two. In New Orleans, that was enough to make them a story for both the field sheet and the odds board. (zurichgolfclassic.com) (themirror.com)