A Furious Rory McIlroy Had to Be Held Back by Shane Lowry Before Getting in Car After Ryder Cup

On Saturday the Ryder Cup ended with a thrilling, match-winning put by Patrick Cantlay and plenty of drama on the 18th green—as well as behind the scenes.
After Cantlay sunk his putt on the final hole, his caddie, Joe LaCava appeared to lift his hat in celebration and linger around Rory McIlroy, who still had to putt out and finish the match.
The situation resulted in some heated remarks exchanged between LaCava and McIlroy, with European Team members Shane Lowry and Justin Rose even getting involved. McIlroy and Matt Fitzpatrick ultimately lost the four ball match to Cantlay and Wyndham Clark, 1 up.
Later, McIlroy appeared to still be upset about 18th hole predicament, and Golf Channel cameras spotted him seemingly yelling at Justin Thomas’s caddie Jim “Bones” Mackay before getting in a car and leaving the scene. Shane Lowry then stepped in and helped put an end to the argument.
Watch the entire situation unfold below.
A furious Rory McIlroy confronted a Team USA caddie in the car park, after he was spotted waving his cap in McIlroy's face when lining up his final putt on 18… 😳 pic.twitter.com/N0SaDg7AsS
— Sky Sports Golf (@SkySportsGolf) September 30, 2023
McIlroy’s agent confirmed to Golf Channel that the incident was not isolated and indeed involved the earlier disagreement on Marco Simone’s closing hole.
Sunday singles at the Ryder Cup should be exciting, to say the least. Europe leads the U.S., 10½–5½.

Andy Nesbitt is the assistant managing editor of audience engagement at Sports Illustrated. He works closely with the Breaking and Trending News team to shape SI’s daily coverage across all sports. A 20-year veteran of the sports media business, he has worked for Fox Sports, For the Win, The Boston Globe and NBC Sports, having joined SI in February 2023. Nesbitt is a golf fanatic who desperately wants to see the Super Bowl played on a Saturday night.
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