Patrick Cantlay keen to defuse row, says Rory McIlroy remarks taken out of context

30 September 2023; Rory McIlroy of Europe speaks to Joe LaCava, caddie for Patrick Cantlay of USA, after their match during the afternoon fourball matches on day two of the 2023 Ryder Cup at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club in Rome, Italy. Photo by Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

Patrick Cantlay has attempted to defuse his Ryder Cup row with Rory McIlroy and says remarks by McIlroy in the aftermath of the dispute have been taken out of context.

In a recent Sunday Independent interview with Paul Kimmage, McIlroy admitted he referred to Cantlay as a 'dick' during the squabbles that followed his altercation with Cantlay's caddie Joe LaCava during Europe's fourball loss to Cantlay and Wyndham Clark.