MARANA, Ariz. — The snow is gone from the Match Play Championship, and so are Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods.
Shane Lowry of Ireland made a 4-foot par putt on the 18th hole to eliminate McIlroy in the opening round of golf’s most unpredictable tournament.
It was the third time in the past four years the No. 1 seed went home after one round.
Moments later, Charles Howell III finished off his round in cold conditions by defeating Woods on the 17th hole. Howell, who had not faced Woods in match play since losing to him in the third round of the 1996 U.S. Amateur, played bogey-free on a course that still had patches of snow and ice after being cleared Thursday morning.
The match was all square when Howell hit a wedge that stopped inches from the cup on the 15th hole for a conceded birdie. Then, he holed a 25-foot birdie putt on the 16th and went 2-up when Woods badly missed a 12-foot birdie putt.
“I had nothing to lose,” said Howell, who started the year outside the top 100 in the world and hasn’t qualified for this World Golf Championship in five years. “In this format, match play is crazy. He’s Tiger Woods. I was lucky to hang in there.”
The final matches were played in near darkness, and they could have stopped after 15 holes. Woods wanted to play on, even though Howell had the momentum. Woods was 2-under for the day, and neither of them made a bogey.
“We both played well,” Woods said. “He made a couple of more birdies than I did. He played well, and he’s advancing.”
McIlroy, the No. 1 player in the world, built a 2-up lead early in the match until Lowry rallied and grabbed the momentum by chipping in for birdie on the par-3 12th and then ripping a fairway metal to within a few feet for a conceded eagle on the 13th.
Lowry missed a short par putt on the 14th, only for McIlroy to give away the next hole with a tee shot into the desert and a bunker shot that flew over the 15th green and into a cactus. But the two time major champion hung tough, coming up with a clutch birdie on the 16th to stay in the game.
McIlroy nearly holed his bunker on the 18th, and Lowry followed with a steady shot out to 4 feet and calmly sank the putt.
“Deep down, I knew I could beat him,” Lowry said. “There’s a reason I’m here, and this is match play.”
For McIlroy, more questions are sure to follow him to Florida for his road to the Masters. He now has played only 54 holes in the first two months of the season, missing the cut in Abu Dhabi and losing in the first round at Dove Mountain.
The Match Play Championship lost its two biggest stars in one day. The only other time the top two seeds lost in the opening round was in 2002, when Woods and Mickelson lost at La Costa.
Match Play Championship results
At Dove Mountain, The Ritz-Carlton Golf Club, Marana, Ariz.
Yardage: 7,791; Par: 72 First Round Seeds in parentheses
Sergio Garcia (12), Spain, vs. Thongchai Jaidee (53) Thailand, 20 holes.
Matt Kuchar (21), U.S., def. Hiroyuki Fujita (44), Japan, 3 and 2.
Ian Poulter (11), England, def. Stephen Gallacher (54), Scotland, 2 and 1.
Bo Van Pelt (22), U.S., def. John Senden (43), Australia, 6 and 5.
Russell Henley (56), U.S., def. Charl Schwartzel (9), South Africa, 1 up.
Jason Day (41) Australia, def. Zach Johnson (24), U.S., 6 and 5.
Richard Sterne (55), South Africa, def. Jason Dufner (10), U.S., 1 up.
Hunter Mahan (23), U.S., def. Matteo Manassero (42), Italy, 5 and 4.
Justin Rose (5), England, def. K.J. Choi (60), South Korea, 2 and 1.
Nicolas Colsaerts (37), Belgium, def. Bill Haas (28), U.S., 5 and 4.
Tim Clark (59), South Africa, def. Adam Scott (6), Australia, 2 and 1.
Thorbjorn Olesen (38), Denmark, def. Jamie Donaldson (27), 3 and 2.
Bubba Watson (8), U.S., def. Chris Wood (37), England, 2 and 1.
Jim Furyk (25), U.S., def. Ryan Moore (40), U.S., 4 and 2.
Rafael Cabrera Bello (58), Spain, def. Lee Westwood (7), England, 19 holes.
Martin Kaymer (26), Germany, def. George Coetzee (39), South Africa, 2 and 1.
Marcus Fraser (52), Australia, def. Keegan Bradley (13), U.S., 1 up.
Fredrik Jacobson (45), Sweden, def. Ernie Els (20), South Africa, 1 up.
Steve Stricker (14), U.S., def. Henrik Stenson (51), Sweden, 5 and 4.
Nick Watney (19), U.S., def. David Toms (46), U.S., 5 and 4.
Alexander Noren (49), Sweden, def. Dustin Johnson (16), U.S., 6 and 4.
Graeme McDowell (17), Northern Ireland, def. Padraig Harrington (48), Ireland, 2 up.
Webb Simpson (15), U.S., def. David Lynn (50), England, 5 and 4.
Peter Hanson (18), Sweden, def. Thomas Bjorn (47), Denmark, 3 and 2.
Louis Oosthuizen (4), South Africa, def. Richie Ramsay (61), Australia, 2 and 1.
Robert Garrigus (36), U.S., def. Branden Grace (29), South Africa, 4 and 3.
Luke Donald (3), England, def. Marcel Siem (62), Germany, 1 up.
Scott Piercy (35), U.S., def. Paul Lawrie (30), Scotland, 4 and 3.
Shane Lowry (64), Ireland, def. Rory McIlroy (1), Northern Ireland, 1 up.
Charles Howell III (63), U.S., def. Tiger Woods (2), U.S., 2 and 1.
Did Not Finish
Carl Pettersson (33), Sweden, leads Rickie Fowler (32), U.S., 1 up through 17 holes.
Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano (31), all square with Francesco Molinari (34), Italy, through 15 holes.
Sports, Pages 23 on 02/22/2013