Hole-in-one heroes Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry win over the media with a traditional gesture at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am

Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry were impressive at the 2025 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am event's first round on Thursday, January 30. The Irish golfers recorded hole-in-ones during the game and earned praise from the media for buying them drinks afterward, a gesture that is considered one of the traditions in golf.

This week's PGA Tour event is taking place at Spyglass Hill Golf Course and Pebble Beach Golf Course. In the first round, Rory McIlroy competed at Spyglass Hill, and on the par-3 15th, he made an impressive hole-in-one on a 119-yard hole. Meanwhile, Shane Lowry teed it up on the Pebble Beach Golf Course and, on the 113-yard par-3 seventh hole, he also recorded a hole-in-one.

Following their hole-in-ones, the duo surprised the media with food and beverages. Golf writer Gabby Herzig shared a picture of Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry's gesture on her X (formerly Twitter) account. Thanking the golfers, she captioned the post:

"The media thanks you guys for being good at golf. @McIlroyRory @ShaneLowryGolf"

Following the opening round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, Lowry and Rory McIlroy both finished in a tie for eighth place with Eric Cole, Justin Thomas, Lee Hodges, Patrick Cantlay, and Lucas Glover at 6-under.

The signature event has no cutline and will wrap up with its finale on Sunday, February 2.

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Shane Lowry pokes fun at Rory McIlroy over hole-in-one

Following the round, during the press conference, Lowry saw McIlroy's hole-in-one footage but jokingly claimed that he was better. He said (via PGA Tour):

"Mine is definitely better."

He also revealed that he might join the Northern Irish golfer at dinner, saying:

"If there's a few people there at dinner, I'm sure. Hopefully Rory's there as well, I get to split the bill with him."

After making the ace on the seventh hole of Pebble Beach, Shane Lowry celebrated with his group members. He teed it up with his Pro-Am partner Jamie Sahar and professional golfer Aaron Rai.

As the Irish golfer made the ace, Lowry hugged Sahar and other caddies and Rai to celebrate the incredible shot.

Following the round, Shane Lowry opened up about his hole-in-one and said (via PGA Tour):

“It is an easy shot, but you still need to play it correctly. For me it was a 54(-degree wedge). I probably could have got lob wedge there but it was a 54. Try to just like flight one down and chase it up the green and get it up there somewhere close to the hole. It came out lovely just left of the hole, which is where you need to pitch it if you want to get it real close. Yeah, big bounce, it was perfect. It just spun and spun right into the hole. It was pretty cool.”

Meanwhile, after the opening round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, Russell Henley took the lead in the game at 8-under.