Rory McIlroy has won his first ever Irish Open, a reward richly-deserved for a man who has single-handedly saved the tournament and established it as one of the top events on the European Tour. McIlroy finished on 12 under par, three shots ahead of nearest challenger Russell Knox. The win was sealed with a tap-in for eagle following an astonishing approach shot on 18, that the RTE managed to miss by cutting to an ad break.
McIlroy was visibly emotional when he dropped the putt on 18 to seal victory:
Ireland's brave leader Enda Kenny had been a visible presence all day around the K Club, most notably in giving a fairly disastrous interview to Sky Sports. Kenny was given the photo opportunity he was waiting for on 18 as he was the first man to congratulate McIlroy as the Irishman left the course:
"You remember me, don't you? Enda. E - N - D - A." pic.twitter.com/H3be9m2tSd
— Balls.ie (@ballsdotie) May 22, 2016
McIlroy gave quite an emotional acceptance speech to Sky Sports (with Kenny once again present), and McIlroy's winners cheque worth €666,660 will be donated to his foundation. Watch the full speech below:
Some of McIlroy's fellow professionals were also eager to congratulate McIlroy on his maiden Irish Open triumph:
Congrats Rors...sick shot on 16 and 18 @McIlroyRory all to a great cause @roryfoundation including the winning check...good man👍
— Rickie Fowler (@RickieFowler) May 22, 2016
Awesome @McIlroyRory @DDFIrishOpen 🏆 #WellDone
— Justin ROSE (@JustinRose99) May 22, 2016
Marvellous.
