Rory McIlroy’s own best version of himself is turning 2025 into one of memory after memory, like a never-ending dreamland of fulfilling all his golfing fantasies and never wanting to wake up.
Except, in McIlroy’s world, this is no dream.
McIlroy is living such dreams out in reality; and this Irish Open win at The K Club, where he defeated Sweden’s Joakim Lagergren at the third hole of a sudden-death play-off, only served to add to his legend in a season that, so far, has seen him win the Pebble Beach pro-am, The Players and – most significantly of all – the Masters in completing the career Grand Slam.
Other matters await his attention, for sure, including this coming week’s BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth and, most tantalisingly, the Ryder Cup at Bethpage, where McIlroy will be the heartbeat of Europe’s quest to retain the trophy on American soil.
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Yet, for all of the anticipated boisterousness of the New York crowd at that Ryder Cup in the weeks ahead, McIlroy was showered in adulation and adoration from young and old among the packed crowds who ventured to Straffan, their love for the Northern Irishman reciprocated in kind in celebrating this latest success.
Lagergren cut a sorry figure on leaving the 18th green. He could be proud of his effort. But others have felt such pain. McIlroy also defeated JJ Spaun in a playoff to win The Players. He also defeated Justin Rose to claim the Masters. McIlroy has found a way to come out on the right side of these duels.
McIlroy – who started the final round four shots behind 54-holes leader Adrien Saddier – matched Lagergren in shooting a final-round 66 for a total of 17-under-par 271 which required three holes of sudden death, all on the Par 5 18th, before victory was claimed. McIlroy’s win came with a pay-day of €873,463 as he also increased his lead in the Race to Dubai where he is looking for a seventh career order of merit title.
“As an Irish golfer growing up, one of the ones we always wanted to win was the Irish Open. I played my first Irish Open at Carton House down the road 20 years ago in 2005 with Harry [Diamond] on the back. It’s been a pretty cool journey since then ... this is going to go down as one of the best years of my career, if not the best, or at least the most memorable for a lot of different reasons, and it was such a thrill and pleasure to play in front of so many people. I’m glad I rewarded them for all their support with a nice finish there in 18 and obviously getting the job done in the play-off,” said McIlroy, who’d eagled the 18th in regulation to get into the play-off.
[ Rory McIlroy feels the love with every step he takes at the Irish OpenOpens in new window ]
A keen tennis fan, McIlroy – who had watched some of the US Open on television during the week – made the comparison between the two sports when it came to the play-off: “I feel like play-offs in golf are a bit like tie breaks in tennis. It’s really about who blinks first. It’s almost about just being a little bit patient.
“If you can just hold your serve, it really is about that. Thankfully, I did enough to get over the line. Same thing at the Masters, same thing at The Players. I feel like I’m a lot more comfortable in playoffs. I feel like I’ve got a good strategy for them. That’s probably the big thing.”
Certainly, McIlroy carries an aura on to the golf course, and especially in head-to-heads.
He acknowledged: “I think the more and more you get yourself in these positions, the more comfortable you are, and in a situation like we had on the back nine where there’s three or four of us in with a chance, I’d always back myself in those positions and be able to find a way to get it done. It doesn’t always work out that way, but the more you get yourself in those positions, the more comfortable you feel, and I think the more experience you have, the more you figure out what is going to be enough to get the job done.
“I’ve had hundreds of goes of trying to win big golf tournaments, and I sort of feel like I’ve got the experience to know what to do, when to press, and when to be conservative, and it’s just finding that balance.”
McIlroy’s first win in the Irish Open, also on the Palmer North, came with a closing eagle to win, and his second also came with an eagle on the 18th to force a playoff and go on to win, only the second Irish player – joining Harry Bradshaw – to win multiple Irish Opens.
The stuff of legends, for sure, with the promise of more. Wentworth. Bethpage. And, further down the line, a first very visit to India.
McIlroy isn’t afraid to share the love, making it a part of his remit to play a global sport. But where he goes, he won’t find anything like the adulation that came his way at The K Club.
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