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Shane Lowry aims playful three-word dig at Rory McIlroy after hilarious blunder during Zurich Classic defence

Shane Lowry aims playful three-word dig at Rory McIlroy after hilarious blunder during Zurich Classic defence

The Irish Sun24-04-2025

SHANE LOWRY aimed a playful three-word dig at Rory McIlroy following their opening round at the Zurich Classic.
The Masters champion reunited with Lowry as they sought to defend their title in New Orleans.
1
Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland and Shane Lowry of Ireland celebrate after a chip shot by Lowry on the tenth green on day one of the Zurich Classic
Credit: Getty Images - Getty
There were some occasional coordination issues between the two Irishman when they went for a high-five after a chip shot on the tenth.
That attempt went hilariously wrong when
Sharing images of the exchange, the Offaly man said: "Needs some work @McIlroyRory 😂☘️"
The Augusta champ and Lowry got off to a good start with an eight-under 64 in the team event.
Read More on Rory McIlroy
Rasmus and
It is McIlroy's first competition since getting his hands on the green jacket following an enthralling play-off victory over Justin Rose at Augusta.
Despite what's surely been a
in the US as well as closer to home, McIlroy is
in New Orleans.
The five-time major winner ignited his 2024 season by
Most read in Golf
Their success was as much memorable for McIlroy celebrating it
But it was his Offaly pal who stole the show at Wednesday's pre-event press conference when he referenced watching through his fingers like fans all over Ireland did as McIlroy eventually got over the line at The Masters.
Teenager Dylan Holmes left stunned in interview as he emulates idol Rory McIlroy with shock West of Ireland win in Sligo
With the latter beside him, Lowry at one point recalled: "I said to my caddie on the 15th hole at Augusta - obviously I was finished up by then - so I was watching the leaderboard.
"You'd made double-bogey on 13 and I said to Darren (Reynolds) 'No matter what happens over the next few holes I think we're going to do well to get him to New Orleans!'
"If things hadn't gone his way I don't think he'd have wanted to be here.
"And I thought if things did go his way he might want to be somewhere else. But I'm happy he's here."
Rory, 35, then added: "I remember that was one of the things Shane said to me that night.
"Y'know about whether I still wanted to play New Orleans.
"And I said absolutely because we're defending a title, we'd so much fun here last year.
"So it was important for me to honour that commitment."

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time6 hours ago

  • The Irish Sun

Horoscope today, June 7, 2025: Daily star sign guide from Mystic Meg

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Rory McIlroy admits ‘concern' for US Open as he crashes to 78 to miss Canadian Open cut
Rory McIlroy admits ‘concern' for US Open as he crashes to 78 to miss Canadian Open cut

Irish Independent

time6 hours ago

  • Irish Independent

Rory McIlroy admits ‘concern' for US Open as he crashes to 78 to miss Canadian Open cut

The Masters champion hit just four fairways at TPC Toronto and shot his highest score since opening with a 78 en route to missing the weekend in last year's Open at Royal Troon. "Yeah, of course it concerns me," McIlroy said after his first missed cut since the final Major of the season last July. "You don't want to shoot high scores like the one I did today. "Still, I felt like I came here obviously with a new driver thinking that that was going to be good and solve some of the problems off the tee, but it didn't. "Obviously, going to Oakmont next week, what you need to do more than anything else there is hit fairways. Still searching for the missing piece off the tee. "Obviously, for me, when I get that part of the game clicking, then everything falls into place for me. Right now that isn't. Yeah, that's a concern going into next week." McIlroy had his preferred driver ruled non-conforming at last month's PGA Championship and struggled from the tee there, finishing 14 shots behind winner Scottie Scheffler in joint 47th. He opted for the new TaylorMade model this week but again struggled from the tee en route to missing the cut by a whopping 11 shots. The Holywood star knew he needed to shoot in the 60s to make the cut after opening with a one-over 71. But his hopes evaporated early when he tugged his second out of bounds playing with a wedge from the rough at the 447-yard fifth and ran up a quadruple bogey eight. Further bogeys followed at the eighth and 10th before he blocked his tee shot into a pond at the 197-yard 11th and made a double-bogey five, then dropped another shot at the 13th, where he drove miles left behind a tree. He made his first birdie of the day at the 15th but bogeyed the 17th before finishing with a birdie four. "I think there's still learnings that you have to take from a day like today," said McIlroy, who found just four fairways, two on each nine. "Even though the last two days didn't go the way I wanted them to, there are still things that I can take from it, and there are still things that I can learn. "I'm gonna have to do a lot of practice and a lot of work over the weekend at home to try to at least have a better idea of where my game is going into next week." He has a decision to make about his driver before taking on Oakmont's punishing rough, as eight of his ten misses in round two were to the right. "I didn't hit enough fairways," he said. "I felt like I drove the ball a bit better yesterday than I did today. "I think once I made that big number on the front nine, I was always behind the eight ball a little. And then, after nine holes, I'd sort of resigned myself to the fact that I'd be flying home to Florida tonight. "It was just about trying to make a few good swings, seeing where the misses were, and you're trying to sort of learn as much as I could, just looking ahead to next week." On the driver, he added: "So I went back to a 44-inch driver this week to try to get something that was a little more in control and could try to get something a bit more in play. "But if I'm going to miss fairways, I'd rather have the ball speed and miss the fairway than not. "I said to Harry going down the last, this is obviously the second time this year I've tried the new version [of driver], and it hasn't quite worked out for me. "So I'd say I'll be testing quite a few drivers over the weekend." It was a better day for Shane Lowry, who shot a two-under 68 to go into the weekend tied for seventh, just four shots behind Cameron Champ on eight-under. Champ shot 66 to lead by two shots on 12-under from Andrew Putnam, who shot a best-of-the-day 62.

Rory McIlroy has 'concerns' as he misses Canadian Open cut by country mile
Rory McIlroy has 'concerns' as he misses Canadian Open cut by country mile

Irish Examiner

time7 hours ago

  • Irish Examiner

Rory McIlroy has 'concerns' as he misses Canadian Open cut by country mile

Rory McIlroy's US Open preparations went spectacularly awry as yet another happy hunting ground turned on him in vicious fashion, the Masters champion missing the cut by a country mile in a Friday horror show at the RBC Canadian Open. Twice a winner in Toronto, McIlroy purred midweek about how this tournament has served as such a reliable springboard to the year's third major in recent years. The 2025 edition didn't follow suit in any way, shape or form, instead ejecting him out at the halfway mark as he missed a cut in North America for the first time in over two years. McIlroy admitted he'll be leaving with deep concerns, particularly after a driver change didn't go according to plan at all. 'Of course it concerns me. You don't want to shoot high scores like the one I did today,' said a visibly frustrated McIlroy. 'I felt like I came here obviously with a new driver thinking that that was going to be good and solve some of the problems off the tee, but it didn't. 'Obviously going to Oakmont next week, what you need to do more than anything else there is hit fairways. I'm still searching for the sort of missing piece off the tee. Obviously for me, when I get that part of the game clicking, then everything falls into place for me. Right now that isn't. Yeah, that's a concern going into next week.' Needing a second-round revival after a sluggish opener at TPC Toronto, McIlroy instead plumbed the depths with an utterly woeful 8-over 78, low-lighted by a quadruple bogey eight. Somehow, it could have been worse, a couple of late birdies saving him from finishing double digits over par. To blame it all on the bedding-in period for his new TaylorMade driver would be to ignore all the other parts of his game which coughed and spluttered. He left the course on 9-over with just three others in the 153-strong field below him. With the notoriously challenging Oakmont hosting next week's US Open, there's a laundry list of work-ons. 'I think there's still learnings that you have to take from a day like today. Look, even though the last two days didn't go the way I wanted them to, there's still things that I can take from it, and there's still things that I can learn,' he insisted. 'I'm going to have to do a lot of practice and a lot of work over the weekend at home and try to at least have a better idea of where my game is going into next week." How disorienting this must all feel, mere weeks removed from his drought-breaking, career grand slam-clinching victory at Augusta in April. In truth, it looks as though McIlroy hasn't yet figured out what golf will look like now that he achieved his holy grail. At the PGA Championship last month, hosted at a Quail Hollow course which he has made his own, he was also fitful and frustrated. At least there he made the cut. It was clear his trip north would be a short one after the disaster came early Friday afternoon. A wild second shot out of the right rough on the 5th hole ended up with a lost ball and from there little improved as he carded an ugly quadruple eight. Another bogey at the 8th left him on 6-over with the cutline disappearing over the horizon. 'I didn't hit enough fairways. I felt like I drove the ball better yesterday than I did today. I think, once I made that big number on the front nine, I was always behind the 8 ball a little bit. After nine holes, I sort of resigned myself to the fact that I'd be flying home to Florida tonight,' McIlroy said. It got worse, another wild drive on 10 the spark for another bogey and then a wet tee shot on the short 11th resulting in a double. Even the late brace of birdies was offset by one more bogey in between on the 17th. Look at the strokes gained data and there were only flashing red lights for the Holywood man. Most worryingly, he was 148th of 153 off the tee. After the driver he used to win at Augusta was deemed non-conforming in a pre-PGA check at Quail Hollow, McIlroy has been testing out a new big stick. So far it's a bit of trial and a lot of error. 'So I went back to a 44-inch driver this week to try to get something that was a little more in control and could try to get something a bit more in play. But if I'm going to miss fairways, I'd rather have the ball speed and miss the fairway than not,' he explained. 'I was saying to Harry going down the last this is the second time this year I've tried the new version, and it hasn't quite worked out for me. So I'd say I'll be testing quite a few drivers over the weekend.' The Irish challenge will instead be carried by Shane Lowry who followed Thursday's stellar 64 with a steadier two-under 68 to put himself in a halfway clubhouse tie for sixth, four shots back of leader Cameron Champ.

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