McIlroy reminds Lowry of 2014 Cognizant collapse and Major year

Shane Lowry speaks after the Cognizant Classic in the Palm Beaches

Rory McIlroy has told Shane Lowry to forget about his Cognizant Classic meltdown and reminded him that he can still have the best year of his career.

The Offaly man blew a three-shot lead when he hit balls in the water at the 16th and 17th at PGA National on Sunday and made back-to-back double bogeys to lose out to Colombia’s Nico Echavarria.

“I played golf with him on Monday morning,” McIlroy said ahead of the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill, where Lowry was third in 2024 and seventh last year. “He was fine. He was in good spirits.

“I reminded him, I double bogeyed the 16th at PGA National in 2014 to lose the tournament. And I went on to win two majors that year.

“So I was trying to, yeah, like, look, it's one event, it was two bad holes, two bad swings. It doesn't mean that the rest of the year's going to be bad.

“Again, I had a horrible finish there in 2014 and ended up going on to have one of the best years of my career. So I just reminded him of that.”

The world number two assessed Luke Donald’s decision to take the European Ryder Cup captaincy for the third match in a row at Adare Manor next year and saw nothing but positives.

“Yeah, it's amazing. I think it's obviously a huge advantage for the European team to have that continuity and that consistency,” he said. “I was sort of banging on that drum going into Bethpage. And we'll have it even more so again.”

But he’s McIlroy surprised Jon Rahm has turned down the deal that’s been accepted by eight LIV Golf members to pay their fines, drop their appeals and play six events this year to avoid further sanction and remain eligible for the Ryder Cup.

and play six events, two of them designated by the Tour, that would allow him to retain his membership and remain eligible for Adare Manor.

“Yeah, I mean I, geez, in my opinion, it's a really generous deal, he said. “Like it's a much softer deal than what Brooks took to come back and play on the PGA TOUR.

“There's a reason eight of the nine guys took that deal, right. I think it's a really good deal. Yeah, obviously Jon doesn't think so, and he's obviously well within his rights to think that way.

“But I just don't see what more the European Tour can do to accommodate these guys to retain their membership.”

DP World Tour CEO Guys Kinnings said Rahm’s situation was “pretty straightforward.”

“He either withdraws an appeal and settles fines or he goes through the appeal process – and that process is underway – and then we’ll obviously then have to go with whatever the decision is made in that appeal hearing.”

As for Donald, he said Rahm’s dilemma was not a factor in his decision to take the Ryder Cup captaincy again.

“Obviously, my plan and my hope is that Jon is available for that team,” Donald said.  “As I said, he’s been a tremendous teammate, a tremendous player and has given us so much. I’ll have to have that conversation soon and see where his head is.”

Lauren Walsh makes her debut as an LPGA Tour member alongside Leona Maguire in the Blue Bay LPGA on Hainan Island in Chinaa while Aine Donegan and Anna Foster play the LET’s Australian Women's Classic near Sydney.