McIlroy wins Irish Open in dramatic play-off

Rory McIlroy held his nerve to win the Irish Open in a dramatic play-off and claim his first victory since completing the career Grand Slam at the Masters in April.

The world number two edged out Sweden's Joakim Lagergren on the third extra hole to win his national title at the K Club for the second time, nine years after his first.

In a remarkable finish, McIlroy holed a 25-foot eagle putt on the 72nd hole to match Lagergren's six-under 66 amid ecstatic scenes at the County Kildare course.

Both players birdied the first two play-off holes, but McIlroy secured the title after Lagergren found water on the third, giving the Northern Irishman his fourth win of the year.

"I thought it was going to be a nice homecoming, obviously coming home with a green jacket and all that, but this has been absolutely incredible," McIlroy told Sky Sports.

"This has exceeded all of my expectations. I'm just so, so happy I could play the way I did this week for all of them and get the win."

For McIlroy, there was a measure of redemption after the heartache of Royal County Down 12 months ago when he missed an eagle putt on the final hole to take Denmark's Rasmus Hojgaard to extra holes.

On Sunday, however, McIlroy slammed his eagle putt home and ultimately prevailed in a play-off for the third time this year after the Players Championship and the Masters.

"I hit it, and I wanted to just be aggressive with it," he added.

"It was such a cool moment, such a cool feeling for that to go in. That gave me a chance in the play-off."

Trailing overnight leader Adrien Saddier by four shots at the start of the day, McIlroy's hopes were dented early with a dropped shot on the opening hole.

However, he picked up three birdies in his next four holes - sinking long putts on the second and fifth - to surge back into contention.

McIlroy also birdied the ninth and 13th, and while he failed to pick up a shot at the par-five 16th, he delivered a memorable moment on the 18th to keep his hopes alive.

In a tight and tense final day, McIlroy found himself in a five-way tie for the lead with Lagergren, Saddier, Angel Hidalgo and Rafael Cabrera-Bello, who made a hole-in-one on the third to enter the mix.

While Saddier faded with a 74, 36-hole leader Lagergren made three birdies before a spectacular eagle on the 16th after knocking his 266-yard approach to five feet.

Lagergren, whose sole DP World Tour title came in 2018, birdied the last to set the target for the chasing pack.

And while Cabrera-Bello and Hidalgo came up just short, McIlroy maintained his focus to record just the second eagle of the day on the final hole.

Significantly, Sunday's win marks a well-timed return to form for McIlroy before the Ryder Cup at the end of the month.

After competing at next week's BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, McIlroy and his European team-mates will attempt to retain the Ryder Cup against the United States at Bethpage Black in New York.

"To do what I did earlier in the year and then to come home and win my national open, no matter what happens for the rest of the year, that's a pretty cool year," added McIlroy, who now has 45 professional wins.

"2025 is going to go down as one of the best, if not the best of my career.

"As I said, we're not finished yet. I've got a big week next week at Wentworth and then obviously everyone's looking forward to the Ryder Cup.

"I'm just so happy my game's in good shape. I feel like I'm playing well and I'm excited for what's coming up."