On Monday, it was announced that Rory McIlroy will be teaming up with Shane Lowry at the 2024 Zurich Cup of New Orleans. He has now revealed the hilarious reason for teaming up with him in this event.
The Zurich Cup of New Orleans is the only official event of the PGA Tour where players compete in teams. The event which takes place at the TPC Louisiana in Avondale, sees eighty pairs of golfers compete in fourball and foursome format.
This appearance will mark Rory McIlroy‘s debut in this event. On the other hand Shane Lowry has played in this event before and will enter the tournament for the fifth time this year. While McIlroy would love to have some experience on his side, this was not the only reason why he choose to team with him.
While speaking with Claire Rogers of Golf.com, McIlroy expressed that he was excited for the event and recalled how he had this discussion with Lowry after the celebrations of the Ryder Cup. One hilarious reason why the two are teaming up is because Lowry’s former partner, Padraig Harrington , now plays on the PGA Champions Tour.
I asked him. You know it was actually, we had this like, really drunken lunch after the Ryder Cup last year. The week after and I said to him you want to play Zurich together? So we're like yeah... because his former partner is now on the Champions Tour, Padraig Harrington... And I’ve never played before, so I’m looking forward to it. Rory McIlroy to Claire Rogers of Golf.com.
This year the Zurich Classic will take place start on April 25 and conclude on April 28. Unlike the other events this year, this will not give out any OWGR points to the participants as it will be a team event.
Shane Lowry sends two-word message to teaming up with Rory McIlroy
Following the confirmation of Rory McIlroy teaming up with Shane Lowry, the Irish golfer shared a two-word message to this. He would take to his official X account to do this.
In his post on X, the 2019 Open Championship winner share two photos. While one photo itself was the official announcement of this, the other one was a special one. The second photo shared by Lowry sees him and McIlroy standing beside each other during their junior days. He would share this throwback by writing, “The Lads” and tagging McIlroy in the post.
How will this dynamic Irish duo now play in the event is something fans are wondering. Given their close bond and experience of playing together before in the Ryder Cup, this duo of McIlroy and Lowry is one to watch out for.
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