Leaderboard:
-16 Lagergren (17)
-15 McIlroy (16), Cabrera-Bello (F)
-14 Hidalgo (15)
Selected Irish:
-7 Lowry (F)
-6 McKibbin (F)
+1 Maguire (F)
Great drive by Lagergren (-16) on 18, the hardest part to hit the fairway and puts himself in a good position to go for a final birdie.
McIlroy (-15) has got 173 yards in from the semi-rough at the 17th. Decent shot on the green but an outside birdie chance.
Hidalgo (-14) from 246 yards is on the green about 35 feet away for eagle. Great shot, if not in comparison to the heroics of Lagergren. Par for Lagergren on 17, a birdie at 18 and it’s hard to see him beaten.
McIlroy is okay at the 17th, just off the fairway but a decent angle for going in.
Just a par for Cabrera-Bello (-15) at the last. He’ll set the clubhouse target but unlikely to be enough.
34 feet for McIlroy on the 16th, he looks all around the hole. He’s pulled off some big putts today, but this would a lot even for him.
A slow putt that kinda dribbles to the hole, looked well short at first, but should be a par.
Lagergren misses his birdie putt on 17, a few feet left to clean up.
130 yards for McIlroy and he plays it quite safe with water to the right, middle of the green but he’ll need to pull off another massive putt to get the birdie there.
Not a good lie for McIlroy and under a tree. Tricky to even get it to good range. Working out his yardages here, wouldn’t be a spot he’d usually be in. McIlroy lays up then.
Hidalgo misses a big birdie chance on 15 meanwhile.
The sun has come out for the final three holes. McIlroy famously hit the green in two on 16 and 18 in 2016 en route to winning. On 18 to stone dead. Can he do it again?
Unlikely after another wayward drive sadly. In the rough, he’ll likely have to lay up.
Eagle for Lagergren! He moves into the lead on -16, the shot deserved that.
An absolute cracker by Lagergren (-14) at the 16th, wow. At the tough par 5 he nails a wood to close. A short eagle putt to take the lead.
Cabrera-Bello (-15) avoids the water on 17 but way too much, way right into the trees, that will be tough from there.
Par for McIlroy, good effort but he’ll definitely take a par after the drive.
McIlroy (-15) somehow gets away with it again, no more than a few feet from the water, inside the right line. Has to take down a red stick to make way. 150 yards with a tree on his right. He asks for it to go and it does. Pitches perfectly 20 feet from the pin. Spot on.
Bogey for Hidalgo! He misses the putt to fall out of the lead of Cabrera-Bello and McIlroy.
Hidalgo lines up the bunker shot like he’s trying to hole it, but pitches it too far and has a tester back for par.
Birdie for Cabrera-Bello! Big moment for the Spaniard as he moves into a tie for the lead.
No dice for McIlroy at the 13th from 25 feet, he knocks in a two footer for par to stay at -15.
Hidalgo hates his shot at the 14th as he drops his club in disgust. Rory hates his more at the 15th as his drive looks like it might have gone in the water. Oh dear. It’s close, will be lucky to get away with that one.
McIlroy follows up then with a great approach at the 13th. But the chasing pack haven’t given up, Hidalgo with a cracking approach at 13 to close.
Birdie for Hidalgo! He joins the lead on -15.
Birdie for McIlroy! Six feet, it wriggles in somehow, a remarkable putt that did a nearly full 360 around the hole and falls in. McIlroy can’t believe it, but he’s in the lead. If it’s your day, it’s your day…
313 off the tee for McIlroy on the 13th, again just off 100 yards wedge. Beautiful shot to seven or eight feet for birdie!
Bogey for Saddier at the 12th. The overnight leader drops out of the lead (-13).
Good drive at 13 for McIlroy, safely on the fairway. Still no movement from that group of five, -14 is the number at the minute but with a few par 5s to come, you imagine -16 would be the number at least.
The crowds watch Rory McIlroy. Photograph: Bryan Keane/Inpho
Not Rory’s best bunker shot ever on the 12th on a week where his bunker shots have stood out. Longer than he’d like for a sand save.
McIlroy then from seven feet… straight in! Par for McIlroy (-14).
“In your head, in your head”, Zombie from the Cranberries, with a Rory twist, comes out from the speaker, followed by Mr Brightside as McIlroy hits an approach at the 12th over the green into the bunker.
Good tee shot by McIlroy on 11 and a good approach from 125 yards out. He has another birdie chance to take the lead on his own.
Alright then, 12 feet for the lead then Rory. Nope, never going in sadly, off to the right. Just a par as the party hole 12th comes up next.
Just a par for McIlroy (-14) in the end but still in the lead.
Meanwhile Shane Lowry finishes off with a birdie, a round of 71 which has him inside the top 20 on -7.
McIlroy goes a little right at the 10th hole off the tee as Hidalgo joins the lead with a big fist pump, great birdie at the 9th. Five-way lead then. Anyone’s game.
McIlroy pokes it with a wood into the rough about 50 yards short of the green, would have preferred the bunker but not too bad.
Birdie for McIlroy! He drains it to join the lead! Four-way tie at the top – Cabrera-Bello, McIlroy, Lagergren and Saddier.
What a shot by McIlroy! From the rough on nine, he hits it over everything to leave himself a 15 footer for birdie. May be sensing blood as he chases his 45th worldwide win.
McIlroy launches one at the ninth but comes out of it in the swing and goes well right into the rough.
Cabrera-Bello (-14) misses a great chance to join the lead of Saddier at the 10th, as Saddier continues to miss greens but grind away to stay at -15, another good chip at the eighth gives him a chance to save, which he finally misses to fall to -14… Rory only one behind.
Remarkable shot by the entertainer Hidalgo (-13) at the eighth as he hits a flop shot that hits the very top of the flagstick and falls down, all with the dramatic pose. The gallery liked that one.
The rain is back at the K Club with vengeance, lashing again as Cabrera-Bello (-14) lays up at the par 5 10th. Lagergren (-14) meanwhile hits it close at 9 with a chance to join the lead, he misses it though, big opportunity wasted.
The Swede is an Irish specialist, it seems, having won the second-tier Northern Ireland Open Challenge in 2014 and the Irish Challenge in 2024. Irish Open would complete the set.
McIlroy’s birdie putt at the eighth (-13) just a few inches away, great effort but lurking and ready to kick off you’d think with three par 5s left in his final 10 holes.
McIlroy (-13) leaves his birdie putt short at the seventh, he’s annoyed by that one.
Lagergren (-14) is on the charge now and holes a birdie putt at the eighth and straight down the middle at the ninth.
Cabrera-Bello is up to 14 under and flying it today, the course is there for the taking now in soft conditions with the rain stopping. Saddier (-15) has a tough par save ahead at the sixth hole after a poor approach, but he makes it.
McIlroy is middle of the fairway at the seventh par 4, from 119 yards another green light special and he doesn’t love it but it’s another big birdie chance from about 10-15 feet.
Birdie putt for McIlroy (-13) from 16 feet at the par 4 sixth after an approach from 160 yards. It just slides by for par but right in the thick of the tournament.
Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland in action. Photograph: Richard Heathcote/Getty
Sorry for the delay but it was Birdie for McIlroy at the fifth, another stunning putt from 42 feet to get to 13 under. He has got it going with the flatstick.
Birdie at the last for McKibbin, it’s a round of 69 and he’s inside the top 25 for now.
McIlroy’s eagle putt then comes up short, the moisture probably making an impact. Short enough putt left for birdie though.
Birdie for McIlroy! Only three behind.
220 yards into the par 5, an iron in hand for McIlroy (-11). Hits a low cut up the side of the green. Fine shot and an eagle putt coming up of a decent distance coming up!
Hidalgo makes bogey on 3 to drop to -13.
Unfortunately McKibbin’s (-5) nicely played final round has been spoiled by a double bogey at the 17th after he hit the water off the tee.
Big drive at the par 5 fourth hole for McIlroy (-11), where a birdie is surely a must.
Hidalgo (-14) bogeyed the second and has a decent sized par putt to come at the third.
Cabrera-Bello has a rare chance to go eagle-eagle to burst into contention, but just leaves the putt short, but he’s up to -13.
Par for Rory. Big moment for McIlroy (-11) as he holes well from nine feet.
Poor shot by McIlroy (-11) at the third, misses the green to the left and it’s not clear if it’s in the bunker or in the water. McIlroy just about safe from the water, in thick, wet rough which held it up, but leaves himself a tricky par putt left with his chip.
Saddier (-15) hits a nice shot at the second and has a chance for birdie which he misses, Hidalgo (-14) had to lay up and has a similar length putt for par, which he misses. Saddier back in front.
Birdie for McIlroy! 38 feet for McIlroy up the hill and it’s right in the middle. That’s more like it, back to -11. The crowd loved that one.
Good par by Saddier (-15), solid stroke, but he’s lost his lead on Hidalgo (-15), who taps in from a foot.
McIlroy only 105 yards in at the 2nd, a wedge, he eyes it down but it’s a mediocre shot that spins back and leaves himself a long birdie putt.
Hidalgo hits a cracking shot at the first, spins it back to a couple of feet. He should join Saddier in the lead, or maybe take the lead, with Saddier missing the green.
McIlroy is safely on the fairway at the second.
Hole-in-one alert! Cabrera-Bello pitching it in at the 3rd. One bounce and straight in the hole. Magic moment for the fans! He’s up to -12.
Bogey for McIlroy! Misses an eight-footer for par sadly.
Lagergren starts with a birdie on the opening hole to move up to 12 under.
McIlroy misses the green with his second shot, into the greenside rough on the right. But shouldn’t be the most difficult up and down.
McIlroy is on the tee now after a bit of practice, his bunker shots have been top-class this week so far.
First hole is 417 yards, tight par 4. He hits a draw with a 3 wood right down the middle.
Hello and welcome to live coverage of the Irish Open final round from The K Club. Rory McIlroy is in contention in tied fourth position, four off the lead of Adrien Saddier. That is certainly surmountable if McIlroy hits his top form at a course where he won his only previous Irish Open in 2016. McIlroy has been in fine form this week, and enjoyed a homecoming type event after his round on Thursday, where he brought out the Masters green jacket in front of the fans. The home crowd will only be for one man today, even if it means getting soaked from the heavy rain so far this morning. He tees off at 12.56pm.
The leaderboard:
-15 Saddier
-14 Hidalgo
-12 Garcia-Heredia
-11 McIlroy, Lagergren
Selected Irish:
-7 McKibbin (14)
-6 Lowry (6)
+1 Maguire (F)