Rory McIlroy and Patrick Cantlay went head-to-head in the Ryder Cup foursomes on Saturday, with the Northern Irishman showing a different side to his personality
Rory McIlroy versus Patrick Cantlay and Joe LaCava II delivered on expectations. And caddie LaCava, as he’d pledged, kept his distance from the drama.
On Friday, the opening day of the Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black, Europe drew first blood by dominating the morning foursomes. Europe secured a 3-1 advantage heading into the afternoon fourballs, where America began their fightback and concluded the day trailing 2 1/2 to 5 1/2.
Going into the afternoon session, one pairing stood out as potentially explosive: Cantlay against McIlroy. Their feud traces back to the 2023 Ryder Cup in Rome, when the Northern Irishman’s confrontation with LaCava boiled over beyond the course boundaries.
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LaCava – Tiger Woods’ former bagman – was heavily jeered by European supporters as he celebrated towards McIlroy following Team USA’s capture of the final fourball point in 2023. LaCava had brandished his cap in the air to respond to fans who had been heckling Cantlay throughout the day after the American allegedly declined to wear headwear in a pay dispute.
McIlroy felt the caddie’s mocking celebration dragged on excessively, and believed he loitered too near his putting line. This sparked a furious exchange of verbal attacks between the duo, with McIlroy even lambasting LaCava’s mate Jim “Bones” Mackay in the club car park, reports the Mirror US.
There was no affection remaining after the Marco Simeone incident; McIlroy even revealed to the Irish Independent that LaCava “used to be a nice guy when he was caddying for Tiger” but had subsequently “turned into an ass” after teaming up with Cantlay. Thanks to a mix of talent, emotion and history, the stage was set for a Ryder Cup showdown that promised to be one for the ages.
Cantlay and McIlroy were in a fierce contest, trading blows with each other. Despite the raucous cheers from both European and American fans, they kept their cool, sinking impressive putts that seemed to deliver knockout punches, only for their opponent to bounce back immediately.
The pair were neck and neck throughout the round. Initially, Cantlay and Sam Burns took the lead with a birdie on the first hole, but McIlroy and Shane Lowry quickly equalised on the next.
The Irish pair then pulled ahead with a 2-up lead, but Cantlay managed to reel them back in with some magic of his own.
Both Cantlay and McIlroy made stunning putts to keep their teams in the running, pushing the match right down to the wire. Cantlay’s approach shot on the final hole went long, while McIlroy’s putt to clinch the match missed wide left.
This time, there were no off-the-course antics. Instead, after watching his shot agonisingly miss the mark, McIlroy – who had thrown his club into the air in despair – showed great sportsmanship by shaking hands with LaCava, a gesture that was notably absent in Rome.
They may not have exchanged many words during the round, but when it mattered most, the respect was clearly there – a stark contrast to the events of two years ago.
Perhaps McIlroy, Cantlay, and LaCava have moved on. However, there could be more drama to unfold over the next two days at Bethpage Black.
McIlroy is set to partner with Tommy Fleetwood to take on Collin Morikawa and Harris English, while Cantlay will once again team up with Xander Schauffele to face Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton in Saturday’s foursomes.
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