Rory McIlroy/Shane Lowry playoff victory caps ideal week for Zurich Classic

WESTWEGO – Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry were in contention for the Zurich Classic title all week long.

Chad Ramey and Martin Trainer were little more than an after-thought while entering Sunday’s final round in 25th place.

But McIlroy/Lowry spent their final round chasing Ramey/Trainer before catching them on the 72nd hole at 25-under-par and capturing the title on the first playoff hole at TPC Louisiana.

The victory by the marquee team in the event capped a week filled with outstanding weather and record crowds.

“The fans and the atmosphere all week has been incredible,” McIlroy said. “People have come out in the thousands to support us. It’s not lost on me how cool that is. … It felt like a big-time atmosphere and a big-time tournament. The crowd really made the weekend.”

The long-time friends and fellow Irishmen (McIlroy is from Northern Ireland and Lowry is from Ireland) were both looking to get their games on track after slow starts to the year.

“We both felt like we needed to come in here and maybe have a very strong week because we wanted to get our summer going,” Lowry said. “We’ve got a lot of big golf coming up soon.”

Ramey/Trainer were in the sixth group to tee off Sunday, starting their round at 10:11 a.m., two hours and 33 minutes before McIlroy/Lowry and 2:44 before third-round leaders Zac Blair and Patrick Fishburn.

But Ramey/Trainer went out and shot a 63 (tying a tournament single-round record in foursomes) after making 11 birdies and two bogeys. Then they sat back for nearly three hours and watched as a handful of teams took aim at their score amid 15-20 mile-per-hour winds with gusts up to 25.

“That is an unbelievable score in those conditions, in that format,” Lowry said.

Ryan Brehm/Mark Hubbard finished third at 24-under and one shot farther back were Blair/Fishburn, Sam Stevens/Paul Bajjon, Garrick Higgo/Ryan Fox and Nico Echavarria/Max Greyserman.

McIlroy/Lowry started slowly for a second consecutive day, but had a strong back nine for a second consecutive day.

“To play the last 12 holes in 5-under was very, very good,” Lowry said. “It showed a lot about our characters and how much we wanted to win this thing.”

After going out in 3-under under and coming in at 5-under during Saturday’s 64, they went out at 1-under and came in at 3-under during Sunday’s 68.

They were tied for the lead after the first round, shooting 61 before shooting 70 in Friday’s second round.

Blair/Fishburn went to 17 tied with Ramey/Trainer at 25-under, but they double-bogeyed to drop two shots back.

McIlroy/Lowry bogeyed 17 to fall out of a first-place tie, but McIlroy’s deft chip within two feet of the pin set up Lowry’s birdie putt at 18 that forced a playoff.

Brehm/Hubbard had chance to get to minus-25 but Brehm’s birdie from the fringe on 18 skipped over the lip of the cup.

All that was left was to see whether Blair/Fishburn could make eagle at 18 and expand the playoff from two teams to three. But they didn’t come close and finished with a par.

McIlroy said he thought he and Lowry had an advantage by being able to keep playing in the playoff while Ramey/Trainer had been idle for a few hours.

“I feel for them a little bit,” McIlroy said. “They played an unbelievable round of golf. To shoot 63 out there in those conditions in foursomes is super impressive. To be sitting around and not really knowing – they might be in a playoff, they might not be. … It’s different than us just coming straight back off the golf course and straight back into it.”

Both teams wound up scrambling on the 579-yard, par-5 18th in the playoff. Trainer teed off first and knocked the ball into the rough. McIlroy followed with a tee shot into the fairway, but about 10 yards short of Trainer’s drive.

Ramey was 293 yards from the pin when he knocked him team’s shot second shot onto the cart path well left of the green. Lowry’s shot from 283 yards away wound up in a sand trap left of the green.

Trainer spent several minutes surveying his options with his drop into the light rough before hitting a chip that landed well short of the green. McIlroy’s shot from the sand trap stopped fewer than 10 feet from the hole, giving his team a clear advantage.

Ramey putted from the rough and the ball stopped a few feet from the hole, leaving Lowry with a birdie putt that would have won it. Lowry’s putt had perfect speed, but the ball stopped maybe an inch off the lip of the cup.

After McIlroy’s tap-in for par, Ramey’s attempt to extend the match to hole No. 9 slid right of the hole, handing the victory to McIlroy and Lowry, who claimed his third PGA Tour victory.

“Obviously a little disappointed, but overall I think it’s important to see the big picture,” Trainer said. “We had a really good week.”

“There’s a lot of really good things to take from this week, and that’s what I’m going to do,” Ramey said. “Solo second finish in the end is still pretty good.”

Trainer cited his team’s improvement over last year’s Zurich (tied for ninth place) and said, “I think we’re definitely going to be back next year and try again.”

The performance by McIlroy, one of the most accomplished and popular golfers in the world, in his Zurich debut, which produced his 25th PGA Tour victory, added to an already banner weekend for the Zurich that left Fore!Kids Foundation CEO/Tournament Director Steve Worthy beaming.

Worthy cited the “buzz” around TPC Louisiana during “an incredible week,” noting that PGA players talk among themselves about the experience that have along the Tour. McIlroy, who received a standing ovation while having dinner at Arnaud’s on Saturday night, and Lowry were among the players that provided positive feedback.

“Word will travel,” Worthy said, noting that the tournament had record attendance for each of the respective days.

“We’re a football town first and foremost,” Worthy said. “Maybe we’re becoming a golf town.”