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On a burning hot day in Rome, the scoreboard finally turned red and with it, the Ryder Cup ignited.
The catalyst was a bizarre news story which sparked a chain of events that turned America’s Patrick Cantlay into a pantomime villain, saw him sarcastically serenaded by thousands of fans as he walked down the 16th fairway, caused members of both teams to exchange angry words on the 18th green, and culminated in Rory McIlroy swearing furiously in a car park, having to be held back by his teammate Shane Lowry, of all people.
The story broke around lunchtime that Cantlay was not wearing a Team USA cap on the course as a kind of silent protest against the lack of payment for Ryder Cup players. Cantlay later strenuously denied it, but not before European fans had took the opportunity to heckle him at every hole with shouts of: “Where’s your hat, Patty?”
As his delicate chip rolled agonisingly past the cup on the fourth green, a voice from up on the hill shouted: “You want money for that?” The joke spread and snowballed across Marco Simone Golf Club so that by the time he reached the 16th, a giant swathe of spectators were waving their hats in the air like they were bidding farewell to the Titanic, singing “hats off, to your bank account” as he walked down the fairway. After keeping a poker face for much of the day, he finally broke into a smile.
But Cantlay was clearly irked, and when he coolly sunk a long putt on the 18th green, he was quick to doff an imaginary cap in the direction of fans. His caddie, Joe LaCava, took the celebrations a step further, waving his own hat around wildly to incite angry boos. McIlroy was trying to line up his own putt, and he glared at LaCava, who stepped back. Lowry and other European teammates watching on were furious, shouting at LaCava to show some respect.
McIlroy and his teammate Matt Fitzpatrick both missed their putts to confirm US’s crucial and much-needed point, and amid the handshakes there were words exchanged first between McIlroy and LaCava, and then between Lowry, Justin Rose and the caddie coming under fire. Caddies are supposed to protect their player at all costs and it was hard to know whether LaCava had taken the heat off Cantlay or simply increased it.
Later McIlroy was pictured swearing in an angry exchange outside the clubhouse. He was held back by Lowry and another US caddie, Jim ‘Bones’ Mackay, as he pointed and swore at an unidentified foe off camera.
“I was there on 18, I saw it unfold,” said Europe captain Luke Donald. “When Patrick made that putt, Joe was waving his hat. Rory politely asked Joe to move aside, he was in his line of vision. He stayed and waved the hat, I think Rory was upset with that.”
Asked about the video of an enraged McIlroy in the car park, Donald said: “I was aware of it. Rory is a passionate player, I’ll speak to him later about it.”
After the match, McIlroy had said clashes on the 18th green would merely add motivation to his desire to succeed on Sunday.
The Northern Irishman said: “Obviously they had a great finish and Patrick made three great putts at the end to seal the deal, so hats off to them. They played a great match, yes, a few scenes there on 18 and just fuel for the fire tomorrow.”
Cantlay was peppered with questions in an awkward press conference, but refused to comment on the conduct of his caddie.
“He is the best,” he said of LaCava. “That is all there is to say.”
More to follow...
