Can Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry defend the Zurich Classic of New Orleans title this week?

The latest edition of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans is set to tee off on Thursday, April 24, at TPC Louisiana in Avondale, Louisiana. The PGA Tour-sanctioned team event will see a field of 158 players compete in teams of two. The two-man sides will play for the winner’s paycheck from the $9,200,000 prize purse.

Reigning champions Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry return to the competition to defend their title this weekend. The duo enters the competition with +360 odds, as per SportsLine.

It is pertinent to note that World No.2 McIlroy is the highest-rated player in the event field. He will play alongside 13th-ranked Lowry to fend off a stacked field, including 16 of the top 50 in the Official World Golf Ranking.

The Irish duo won the title last year after an exciting playoff outing, beating the pairing of Chad Ramey and Martin Trainer.

For the unversed, McIlroy comes into the competition on the back of his best start to a PGA Tour season in over a decade. The Northern Irishman, who missed the season-opener due to injury, has won three tournaments so far. He clinched trophies at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, THE PLAYERS Championship and the Masters, ending his decade-long wait for a fifth major and career Grand Slam.

Meanwhile, Lowry played three more tournaments than McIlroy but has yet to taste victory. The 38-year-old golfer finished runner-up to his teammate at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. This has been his best finish of the season so far. He finished twice in the top 10 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and the Valspar Championship. However, he only managed a T42 at the Masters.

The duo are currently the outright favorites to win the Zurich Classic in Louisiana.

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Listed below is Rory McIlroy’s and Shane Lowry’s 2025 PGA Tour season so far with earnings:

Rory McIlroy:

• AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am: 1st – $3,600,000
• The Genesis Invitational: T17 – $270,714
• Arnold Palmer Invitational: T15 – $349,000
• THE PLAYERS Championship: 1st (Playoff win) – $4,500,000
• Texas Children’s Houston Open: T5 – $337,844
• Masters Tournament: 1st (Playoff win) – $4,200,000

Shane Lowry:

• Farmers Insurance Open: Missed Cut – --
• AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am: 2nd – $2,160,000
• The Genesis Invitational: T39 – $82,000
• Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches: T11 – $184,986
• Arnold Palmer Invitational: 7th – $700,000
• THE PLAYERS Championship: T20 – $240,250
• Valspar Championship: T8 – $245,775
• Masters Tournament: T42 – $75,600
• RBC Heritage: T18 – $226,056

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2025 Zurich Classic of New Orleans Day 1 odds

Defending champion McIlroy and Lowry lead the Zurich Classic odds list, while World No.4 Collin Morikawa and teammate Kurt Kitayama follow them. The duo holds 14-1 odds, according to SportsLine. Meanwhile, the pairing of J.T. Poston and Keith Mitchell sits behind them with 16-1 odds.

Thomas Detry and MacIntyre (18-1), Taylor Moore and Wyndham Clark (22-1), Aaron Rai and Sahith Theegala (22-1), and Andrew Novak and Ben Griffin (22-1) are some other big-name duos to watch this weekend at the Zurich Classic.

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Listed below is the top odds list for the TPC Louisiana's Zurich Classic competition (As per SportsLine):

• Shane Lowry / Rory McIlroy +360
• Kurt Kitayama / Collin Morikawa +1400
• J.T. Poston / Keith Mitchell +1600
• Thomas Detry / Robert MacIntyre +1800
• Taylor Moore / Wyndham Clark +2200
• Aaron Rai / Sahith Theegala +2200
• Andrew Novak / Ben Griffin +2200
• Rasmus Højgaard / Nicolai Højgaard +2500
• Max Greyserman / Nico Echavarria +3300
• Brice Garnett / Sepp Straka +3500
• Ryan Fox / Garrick Higgo +3500
• Akshay Bhatia / Carson Young +3500
• Nick Taylor / Adam Hadwin +3500
• Jesper Svensson / Niklas Norgaard +3500
• Laurie Canter / Jordan Smith +4000
• Michael Thorbjornsen / Karl Vilips +4000
• Thorbjørn Olesen / Matt Wallace +4000
• Alejandro Tosti / Joe Highsmith +4000
• Matt Fitzpatrick / Alex Fitzpatrick +4500
• Jhonattan Vegas / Kevin Yu +4500
• Rico Hoey / Sam Ryder +4500
• Joseph Bramlett / Alex Smalley +4500
• Max McGreevy / Sam Stevens +4500
• Jacob Bridgeman / Chandler Phillips +5000

More details on the PGA Tour’s Zurich Classic will be updated as the event progresses.