Just when he imagined his year could not get any better, Rory McIlroy delivered another moment of magic to add further gloss to a shimmering 2025.
The world number two had returned to the national Open he had won for the first time nine years earlier as a newly-minted Masters champion having completed the career grand slam of major victories with his win at Augusta National last April.
That had been his third victory of this calendar year and 147 days later he served up number four with a play-off success at the third hole of sudden death over Sweden’s Joakim Lagergren.
By comparison to the manner in which the Irishman forced the play-off, the denouement of the shoot-out, with the Swede finding the water to the left of the 18th green to allow McIlroy to two-putt for victory, was relatively humdrum. For the 72nd hole of regulation play was where the drama really unfolded.
Lagergren, playing in a group ahead of McIlroy in the penultimate pairing, had stolen a march on the field with an eagle at the par-five 16th and his birdie at the last for a 66 opened up a two-shot lead on the five-time major champion at 17 under par. So McIlroy reached the final hole knowing he needed to eagle the closing par-five to extend the contest into extra holes. A perfect drive to 240 yards from the hole was one thing, his approach shot left him a 27-foot putt to force the play-off.
And boy did he deliver, drilling his putt into the hole as the huge crowds massed along one side of the green and even more spectators lining the first fairway on the other side of the water roared their delight.
“I knew I had 202 yards downwind,” McIlroy said of his approach from the fairway. “I knew I needed iron but didn’t really have a chance of going long. I felt like with the adrenaline, if I hit hard, I could get it all the way back there. I caught it a tad skinny, but it was still a decent shot and that obviously led to that putt.
“I guess the thing going through my head when I was looking at the putt, was the putt I had at Royal County Down last year. I’m on 18, and I tried to get into a play-off with Rasmus (Hojgaard), but it was an easier putt, it was uphill, it was right to left, I knew I could be aggressive with it, I could have a go at it. So I picked my line and I’d left a few putts short today, so I just told myself, just get this one with the hole, give it a chance, and, you know, it was nice to see it go right in the middle.”
McIlroy may have left some birdie chances behind with short putts but he had also delivered some from distance, recovering from an opening bogey to send down a 38-footer at the second, then another from 43 feet at the fifth. At the 13th he also caught a great break from six feet as his ball did a complete circle around the hole before finally dropping for an invaluable birdie in his round of 66 to tie Lagergren at 17 under par. It all added to the sense that this was an incredible day’s golf in a memorable, winning season.
“2025 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,” he said. “Yeah, just an incredible week. Just the crowds, the atmosphere out there all week, but especially over the weekend and being in the last few groups.
“Just such a thrill and such a pleasure to play in front of so many people and to feel that support and to have them yelling you on down the closing stretch. I’m glad I rewarded them for all their support with a nice finish there on 18 and obviously getting the job done in the play-off.
“As an Irish golfer growing up, one of the ones we always wanted to win is the Irish Open. I played my first Irish Open at Carton House down the road 20 years ago in 2005 with Harry on the bag, so it’s been a pretty cool journey since then and just an amazing week.”
For a golfer who has experienced so many highs as both an individual and a Ryder Cupper, the reception he received when that eagle putt dropped on 18 had to be considered one of his coolest moments on a golf course, it was suggested.
“It was really loud. It’s right up there,” McIlroy said. “Just that scene on 18, you know, hitting your second shot into the green and you’ve got the grandstand and all the crowd on the right, but then half of the first fairways as well.
“It’s just an absolutely incredible scene. You always want to have a putt on the last green to win or do something big, and that was definitely one of them. I’ll remember that for a long time.”
McIlroy and Lagergren had finished two strokes ahead of the field with Spaniards Rafa Cabrera-Bello and Angel Hidalgo tying for third place, the former after a hole in one at the 184-yard par-three third in his final round on the way to a closing 67 while the latter did not come close to matching his third-round 63 with a 71.
Overnight leader Adrien Saddier of France had to settle for a disappointing two-over-par 74 that left him in a tie for fifth with Spain’s Angel Ayora, who carded a 67.
Shane Lowry finished his week with a one-under 71 to record a tie for 15th at seven under par while Tom McKibbin, McIlroy’s Holywood clubmate, finished a stroke further back on six under and a tie for 20th thanks to a three-under 69.
Alex Maguire, the fourth Irishman to make the halfway cut on Friday evening, shot a second consecutive one-over 73, having reached his main objective of playing the weekend. He finished on level par for the week to finish 50th of the 72 golfers who played all 72 holes to collect his biggest pay cheque since turning professional last year, €19,610. It may have been dwarfed by McIlroy’s winnings of €837,463 but it will mean just as much to the 24-year-old after a couple of seasons of struggle.
