McIlroy's row with LaCava was sparked by caddie telling him to 'relax'

10/07/2023 Golf

REVEALED: Rory McIlroy’s furious Ryder Cup row with Joe LaCava began when the caddie told him to ‘relax’ on the green after the Europe star asked him to move, says USA vice-captain Fred Couples

  • Rory McIlroy was incensed last week after the Saturday round of the Ryder Cup
  • And Fred Couples has shed some light on the contentious situation
  • DailyMail.com provides all the latest international sports news

Rory McIlroy’s furious row with Joe LaCava at the Ryder Cup began with the caddie telling him to ‘relax,’ Fred Couples has revealed.

Couple, the USA vice captain, was speaking on his SiriusXM PGA Tour Radio show when he relayed what McIlroy and LaCava had said to each other on the 18th green in Rome.

‘I asked [LaCava] what was said. He said Rory looked at him and said, ‘Mooove’. And he made the ‘ooo’ last a little longer. And Joe replied, ‘Relax, Rory,’ Couples said.

McIlroy and his teammates were left incensed when LaCava, Patrick Cantlay’s caddie, celebrated in front of the Northern Irishman and entered his line of vision as he prepared for a crucial putt.

However, Couples said, ‘I want someone to tell me where anything that happened is disrespectful. I didn’t see it. Patrick screamed, which he doesn’t do very often and he tipped his fake cap.

Rory McIlroy had argued with Patrick Cantlay’s caddie Joe LaCava on the 18th hole

McIlroy then launched into a livid rant while leaving Marco Simeone the same day

‘We all were on the front of the green,’ Couples said. ‘No one moved. We just took our hats off and made little circles with our hats.’

 ‘Joe LaCava was standing [on the green]. I don’t think he moved two feet. People think he shushed Rory when he did that hand gesture,’ Couples continued.

 ‘Little Harry Diamond, who we all love, too, caddies for Rory, then he chimed in. So Joe said, ”I don’t have time for you.”

McIlroy’s teammates Shane Lowry and Justin Rose, who had gathered to watch, also spoke to LaCava.

Shane Lowry and Fred Couples speak on the 18th green during Saturday of the Ryder Cup

Tensions later spilled over onto the car park, as a raging McIlroy could be heard shouting ‘This can’t happen, this can’t happen – it’s a f*****g disgrace’ at LaCava, with a security guard forced to step in before teammate Shane Lowry guided him to a waiting BMW 4×4.

Another US caddie, Jim ‘Bones’ Mackay appeared to be trying to ease the situation before a security guard attempted to step in. Irishman Lowry then intervened and led a still-seething McIlroy to the vehicle.

Fans had spent the round taunting Cantlay by waving their hats in the air after an earlier report claimed he was not wearing a cap as a form of protest against not being paid for competing in the tournament – something he later denied.

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