- LaCava took off his cap and waved it in the air as Cantlay made the decisive putt
- McIlroy appeared enraged by his antics and was later seen losing his cool
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Rory McIlroy has denied reports that he met with Patrick Cantlay’s caddy Joe LaCava to clear the air after their heated row at the Ryder Cup on Saturday.
Earlier on Sunday it was reported that LaCava had contacted McIlroy and the European team to apologize ahead of the final day of the Ryder Cup.
The 68-year-old caddy removed his cap and waved it in the air as Cantlay made a decisive putt on 18 in the crucial final four-ball match, seemingly irritating McIlroy.
But when questioned about rumors of a meeting with LaCava, the Northern Irishman said: “I haven’t met Joe.”
When asked to confirm that no meeting had taken place, he repeated: “I have not met Joe.”
Rory McIlroy has denied reports claiming he met Patrick Cantlay’s caddy Joe LaCava
McIlroy had an altercation with LaCava on Saturday after taking off his cap and waving it in celebration
He was then seen fuming at someone as he left Marco Simone on Saturday
After losing his cool on Saturday, McIlroy held his nerve to beat American Sam Burns 3&1 in his singles match on Sunday.
Discussing how determined he was to win a point for Europe after Saturday’s drama, he said: ‘I was focused, I was very focused.
‘I let it feed me. I didn’t let it detract from what was a fantastic week and I used that little incident to my advantage.
“It was a bit of a deflating finish last night, but I think what happened on that last green gave all of us a fire in the bellies to go out and try to get the job done today.”
After Saturday’s fourballs, McIlroy had to be bundled into a car as tensions rose following LaCava’s antics.
He could be heard shouting: ‘This can’t be happening, this can’t be happening – it’s a bloody shame’ as a security guard was forced to intervene before team-mate Shane Lowry led him to a waiting BMW 4×4.
The feud with Cantlay and his caddy began when European fans taunted the Californian for his decision not to wear a cap, initially claiming it was in protest at players not being paid to participate in the Ryder Cup – something that he later denied.
McIlroy’s outburst in the parking lot comes after a tense exchange with LaCava on the final hole
Members of Team Europe objected to LaCava’s celebrations and lack of etiquette
When Cantlay then sank a 30-footer to leave the U.S. on the brink of winning the match, he responded by miming removing a hat as LaCava happily waved his into McIlroy’s line of sight.
McIlroy made his frustrations known on the course to LaCava before television cameras later captured him losing his temper in the parking lot.
Europe captain Luke Donald said on Saturday: ‘I’ll talk to Rory when I get back. I didn’t see the incident (in the parking lot). I saw that one at 18. I think we always – as I said in my speech, we always try to play with passion, play with energy, but play with respect. That will certainly be my message to the players.’
The Englishman confirmed that the row over sportsmanship had led to heated scenes.
“Rory politely asked Joe to step aside,” Donald said. ‘He was in his line. He stood there and didn’t move for a while and kept waving his hat… So I think Rory was upset about that.”