Rory McIlroy, Shane Lowry having fun alongside Joel Dahmen, Keith Mitchell at Zurich Classic of New Orleans

Rory McIlroy laid his head on Shane Lowry’s shoulder with a smile. It’s McIlroy’s first time in New Orleans and he’s alongside a good pal, and they’re eating – and playing well.

And then there’s Joel Dahmen, who has cut the top off of his trademark bucket hat to make a bucket-visor combo in a tip of, well, the hat, to his partner Keith Mitchell’s signature style.

The duos of McIlroy, Lowry and Dahmen, Mitchell are certainly having plenty of fun this week at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. But, through 36 holes, fun has also equaled fine play. The Irishmen were tied for the lead through the morning wave Friday after a 2-under 70, while Dahmen and Mitchell are just two shots back after their own 2-under effort in the second round.

“We’ve played great, honestly,” Mitchell said. “It’s been fun, and that’s kind of our goal this week.”

The fine start comes at a good time for Dahmen, who has made just six cuts this season – and has just one result inside the top 40. Mitchell, meanwhile, has played a little steadier than his partner of late. Mitchell found the weekend in seven of his last eight starts and has two top-10s on the season. As a duo, though, they’ve found a special spark so far this week.

“Leaned on him; he leaned on me,” Dahmen said. “We made putts. We're not known for making putts. We're known for ball-whacking, but we made some nice putts out there, scrambled pretty well.”

McIlroy and Lowry are tied in the clubhouse with Aaron Rai and David Lipsky at 13-under through 36 holes with the afternoon wave underway at a breezy TPC Louisiana. McIlroy won on the DP World Tour at the beginning of 2024 but hasn’t yet found the winner’s circle on the PGA TOUR. Lowry has made seven straight cuts and had back-to-back top-five finishes in the Florida Swing.

On Friday at TPC Louisiana McIlroy talked up his good friend after Lowry missed a few putts early in the day.

“I was just trying to keep him as positive as possible and just remind him that I’m here and I’m here to back him up in any way that I can,” McIlroy said.

He was happy to have Lowry, long known as a wizard with a wedge, on his side.

“Shane has got a wonderful short game, and it gives me confidence going for those greens whether it be the par 4s or the par 5s that if I get it anywhere up there around the green, I'm going to have a very good look for birdie after he hits his,” McIlroy added.

The duo has seemingly hit one of New Orleans’ many excellent dining options every night since touching down – and Friday night sounds like it will be no different. They’ve got another reservation booked together after going to a French restaurant for steaks on Thursday. McIlroy mentioned Friday afternoon may be the time for a quick walk along Bourbon Street.

“I’m excited to be in a new place,” McIlroy said earlier in the week. “We spend our whole lives going back to the same cities, the same golf courses, and the same routines. So, to do something a little different is nice.”

Doing a few different things away from the course, playing alongside a friend, and being in contention heading into the weekend on the PGA TOUR sounds like a good recipe for a nice week, indeed.

“We're still trying to win a golf tournament, and sometimes that can get in the way of having fun,” Keith Mitchell explained with a smile. “We’re going to let the fun get in the way of winning a tournament.”