Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry were spotted sharing a lighthearted game of darts ahead of the 2025 Ryder Cup, evidencing how close their friendship is. The pair of PGA Tour pros have been longtime friends both on and off the course, and will team up under Luke Donald to bring glory to Team Europe this weekend.
Both men have been selected to compete at the prestigious team tournament at Bethpage Black, where they will meet a number of long-time rivals from across the pond such as Bryson DeChambeau, Xander Schauffele and Scottie Scheffler. And while McIlroy and Lowry will undoubtedly have their minds fixed on success at present, that didn’t prevent them from having a little bit of fun in the build-up. Suited and booted after arriving for the tournament, the Ryder Cup’s official Instagram account shared a sweet video of the long-time friends at the oche and showing off their darts skills.
The clip showed McIlroy looking for a double-two at the oche to check out, landing just north of the spider before his attempt at a double-one also flew milimetres wide and landed in the double 18 to see him bust. A beaming Lowry then patted him on the arm as he stepped up to secure his own checkout.
Lowry was then seen thrusting his arms in the air in jubilation as the two chuckled away. And fans of the golfers were quick to rush to the comments section to share their appreciation for McIlroy and Lowry’s budding friendship.
One user wrote: “Go on the lads,” while another pondered: “Is there a better event to play in as a professional athlete than the Ryder cup with all your mates.” A third also added: “Love it. The craic must be bleedin deadly.”
It comes as McIlroy will hope to cap off a whirlwind year by lifting the Ryder Cup for Europe. The OWGR No. 2 kicked off his season with a win at the ATandT Pebble Beach Pro-Am in February, before beating JJ Spaun to the Players Championship after a nail-biting play-off the following month.
The biggest win of McIlroy’s career to date followed at Augusta National in April, when he finally landed the coveted Green Jacket to complete the Career Grand Slam. The 36-year-old then clinched the Amgen Irish Open earlier this month, putting him in a good position to see success at the Ryder Cup.
Lowry, meanwhile, has had a largely forgetful season on the PGA Tour, with his best finish also coming at Pebble Beach, where he came two strokes behind McIlroy in second-place. He will hope to have an inspired time at Bethpage Black this weekend with his fellow Europeans.
The 2025 Ryder Cup tees off at Bethpage Black on Friday, 26 September. You can follow all of the action with Express Sport’s live blog, here.
