Players on the cusp at the Northern Trust

66. Shane Lowry

One of two Major champions in this cusp group of 10, the 2019 British Open champion is also the least practiced – at least on the U.S. Tour. He has picked his spots assiduously, competing in just seven PGA events since the beginning of May…and that assumes the Olympics are counted as a PGA Tour event.

For the most part, Lowry has cherry-picked the headline events: the U.S. and British Opens, the Olympics, the WGC FedEx.

Aside from the fact that he begins the Northern Trust inside the Top 70, there are two good reasons to like Lowry’s chances to stay on the good side of the cusp this week.

First, he’s playing as well as anybody in the grey area. His 70.31 stroke average is the lowest of the 10.

Second, he’s not only schooled in the Tour’s biggest recent events, he’s done fairly well in them Lowry was top 25 in his three most recent starts – the FedEx, the Olympics and the Brit – and five of his last six.

Looking for a cautionary note? Check Lowry’s numbers on the green. He ranks a desultory 148th this season in Strokes Gained Putting. In one sense, it’s a testimony to the strength and versatility of Lowry’s game that he’s done as well as he has despite anything resembling a solid putting game.