World number two McIlroy came into his national Open as firm favourite and truly delivered in every way imaginable
The 2025 Amgen Irish Open will go down as one of the greatest ever after Rory McIlroy’s dramatic play-off victory at the K Club. The Holywood man needed an eagle on the last hole to force a play-off and did just that to spark wild celebrations among the huge crowd in Kildare.
McIlroy still had to go and win the play-off against Sweden’s Joakim Lagergren, but he did that at the third time of asking and the huge crowds around the final hole at the K Club erupted for a second time when their man was crowned champion – his second Irish Open triumph at the course.
The scenes of delight will live long in the memory but, apart from Lagergren, there was another unhappy onlooker – the bookmaker.
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The world number two came into his national Open as firm favourite and truly delivered in every way imaginable.
McIlroy accounted for 24% of all pre-tournament stakes with William Hill, three times more than the next most popular player – Tyrrell Hatton – and he attracted 35% of all in-play bets.
In pre-event markets, McIlroy was the third-worst result for William Hill, behind only Shane Lowry and runaway liability Brooks Koepka, who would’ve accounted for roughly twice the losses of Lowry and four times those of Rory.
However, McIlroy’s surge during the final round and dramatic playoff triumph turned him into the only losing in-play outcome, capping off a tough weekend for the leading bookmaker.
Team Europe will no doubt be looking to Rory to produce some points in New York later this month, and he’s 4/1 to be the top European points scorer in Luke Donald’s side.
“Rory McIlroy ’s victory at the K Club may have thrilled fans, but it certainly didn’t help our bottom line. The Masters Champion was incredibly well-backed from the outset, attracting almost a quarter of all pre-tournament stakes and dominating the in-play market as well,” said Lee Phelps, a spokesperson for William Hill.
“He was the third-worst result for us before a ball was hit and by far the biggest losing outcome once the action got underway – no other player even came close to matching his in-play volume. It was a dramatic win, but one that left us licking our wounds.”
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