‘We’re all friends now’: Rory McIlroy says dispute with Joe LaCava settled
Rory McIlroy appears to be well over his Ryder Cup row with caddie Joe LaCava.
Speaking in a recent interview with BBC, McIlroy said that he and LaCava, the longtime caddie for Tiger Woods who now loops for Patrick Cantlay, have settled matters following LaCava’s lingering celebration on the 18th green during a Saturday afternoon four-ball match involving both McIlroy and Cantlay. McIlroy’s frustrations spilled over into the clubhouse’s valet line, and the next day McIlroy called LaCava’s actions “disrespectful” and after leading Europe to victory he revealed that he and LaCava had only briefly texted.
“It’s a point of contention and it still hurts, but time is a great healer, and we’ll all move on,” McIlroy said that Sunday evening at Marco Simone.
McIlroy told BBC that later that night LaCava came into the European team room to extend an olive branch.
“Things happen in the heat of the moment, tensions were high,” McIlroy said. “Joe LaCava came into the European team room on the Sunday night and had a drink and a chat. I’ve had a great relationship with Joe over the years when he caddied for Tiger, and that wasn’t going to change.
“For me, the incident happened, I purposely didn’t want to meet anyone on the Sunday morning because I wanted what had happened to fuel me for that day. My whole focus was let’s make sure Europe win the Ryder Cup and then we will sort all the other stuff out afterwards.
“And it’s all fine. We’re all friends now.”