– Rory McIlroy has taken it all: the victory, the glory, and the epic by winning the Amgen Irish Open after defeating the Swede Joakim Lagergren in the third playoff hole. Both had finished tied at -17. A perfect ending for the extraordinary Irish fans. What an atmosphere. What a joy. It would have been nice if they hadn’t cheered Lagergren’s ball into the water on that last playoff hole, but it’s perfectly understandable. Their idol was there, their star, arguably the most important athlete in Ireland’s history.
– McIlroy has turned logic into epic today. Although he started four shots behind the leader Saddier, he was the favourite to win. However, he had to sink an eight-metre putt on the 18th for eagle to tie with Lagergren, who was already in the clubhouse. That’s Rory for you. That’s why his legend is so great. It’s not just what he wins, but how he wins it. It always seems like it costs him a bit more than it should due to his overwhelming potential.
– Rory has won his second Irish Open mainly for two reasons. The first is that he putted like an angel. He sank long putts that don’t often go in. For example, on the 2nd, he made a putt of over 11 metres, on the 3rd he saved par from almost three, on the 5th another 13-metre putt dropped, two more of three on holes 9 and 12, the second for par, and the last eight-metre one on the 18th. That’s a lot. In this way, he compensated for not having a particularly brilliant day from the tee, which is why he couldn’t snatch a birdie on holes 10 and 16, two par 5s that were generous to most players.
– He also won because some four-leaf clover held his tee shot on the 15th when it was inevitably heading for the water. It stopped half a metre from the lake, within the penalty area. And because, to tell the whole story, Lagergren sent it into the water on the third playoff hole. The Swede lacked the luck he had on the eagle at the 16th, with a ball he never thought would go down that line, which in 90 out of 100 occasions ends up in the water and stopped two metres uphill for eagle.
– The putt on the 72nd hole was the apotheosis moment. And rightly so. There was a football stadium focused solely on that putt. Rory hit it with determination and Dublin roared. A magnificent training for the Ryder Cup, happy Luke Donald must have thought from his home. Rory makes epic out of logic, and the fans appreciate it. What sports fan doesn’t prefer epic over logic? It’s McIlroy’s second victory in the Irish Open, the second at the K Club, the fourth of the season, and the twentieth of his career on the DP World Tour. The legend keeps growing. On Thursday, he posed with the Green Jacket in front of the Irish fans. On Sunday, he lifts the trophy. A dream.
– Only one player had a mathematical chance of getting into that playoff between McIlroy and Lagergren. It was Ángel Hidalgo (-15). He still attempted a very long eagle putt on the 18th to give himself that last chance. He deserved it. It wasn’t his best day of golf, but the fighting spirit he shows with every shot is contagious. He started with a massive birdie on the 1st, but from there, he got out of sync, perhaps due to an excess of adrenaline, desire, or ambition. He struggled to hit greens and spent more time solving problems than putting for birdie. However, while his stellar playing partner, Adrien Saddier, also with problems, was fading, the man from Malaga, a hurricane of courage, held on. It’s inevitable not to remember those two short putts for par and birdie that slipped away on the 14th and 15th. And yet he came back and gave himself one last chance. Superb. His best result of the year. It should be a turning point.
– We started with Ángel Hidalgo because he was the closest to victory, but it wasn’t just him. A superb week for the Armada. The best since Ras al Khaimah. We also had three Spaniards in the top 5 in the emirate, although there was a victory there, Alex del Rey’s. The best part is that the three in the top 5 in Ireland are different. It speaks of depth and that’s very positive.
– Rafa Cabrera Bello (-15) finished tied for third place with Hidalgo. It’s his first top 10 since last year’s European Open in June and his best result since finishing second in Abu Dhabi at the beginning of 2022. Beyond the final position, the best part has been the splendid sensations the Canary Islander offered throughout the week, especially this Sunday. He has regained the best tee-to-green version of his career. And there’s no better example, although there’s always a bit of luck in these types of shots, than the hole-in-one he achieved on the 3rd. Impressive. A big moment at the K Club. He celebrated it in style. It’s the second of his career on the DP World Tour. The other was in 2009 in Indonesia. Beyond the hole-in-one, Rafa was brilliant from tee to green, hitting one great iron shot after another. He just needed to sink a few more putts to get into the playoff as well.
– Ángel Ayora (-13) also capped off a magnificent week. He shot 67 this Sunday, the fifth-best round of the day, tied precisely with Rafa. A valuable top 5. He continues to grow in his game and in the Race to Dubai. He asks himself for a bit more finesse with the wedges and the putter to be fighting for victories week in and week out. He has the ability for it. Right now, there aren’t many in the world with a better long game than Ayora.
– Alfredo García Heredia (-8) didn’t have his Sunday. In any case, it’s his best result of the year, twelfth, and he should see it as a step forward in his fight to keep his card. He completed a very good week despite severe back pain. It wasn’t an easy day for the Asturian, going out in the penultimate group, again with Rory, with all the crowd around, with the heat belt on and off, the rain, the umbrella… Too many things against him. He himself admitted that he hates playing in the rain. His main drawback today was from the tee. He was almost never in a good position to leave himself birdie chances. Be that as it may, a step forward. A positive week. There’s time and tournaments left to straighten out his situation. If he maintains the level of irons from this week, he should find his moment. A good tournament finish also for the Elvira brothers. They shot 70 and finished inside the top 30.
