Rory McIlroy will be roared on in his homeland as the 153rd British Open gets underway at Royal Portrush on Thursday as world number one Scottie Scheffler seeks his first Claret Jug.
McIlroy returns to Northern Ireland as the Masters champion but determined to make amends for his disastrous start at Portrush six years ago when a quadruple bogey at the opening hole on his way to a first-round 79 saw him miss the cut.
The world number two is the star attraction for the close to 280,000 spectators set to attend the four days of play at the final major of the year.
Scheffler, though, is the favourite despite having never won the British Open before, while defending champion Xander Schauffele is aming to put a frustrating year behind him.
McIlroy, who tees off at 15.10 local time (1410 GMT) alongside Ryder Cup team-mate Tommy Fleetwood and American rival Justin Thomas, may have to battle the worst of blustery weather for the opening round with thunderstorms forecast early evening.
But the man who announced himself as a star of the future by breaking the course record at Portrush with a 61 as a 16-year-old 20 years ago, is confident after ending his 11-year major drought at the Masters in April.
“When I was looking at the calendar for 2025, this was the tournament that was probably circled even more so than the Masters for different reasons,” said McIlroy, who finished second at the Scottish Open last week.
“It’s lovely to be coming in here already with a major and everything else that’s happened this year. I’m excited with where my game is.”
Scheffler’s eighth-place finish at the Scottish Open stretched his streak of top-10 finishes to his last 10 tournaments, a run which includes three victories.
The American has also added to his major haul this year by winning his third at the PGA Championship.
Yet, Scheffler’s comments on the eve of the tournament that his is “not a fulfilling life” caught the eye.
“There’s a lot of people that make it to what they thought was going to fulfil them in life, and you get there, you get to number one in the world, and they’re like, ‘What’s the point?'” Scheffler said.
“It feels like you work your whole life to celebrate winning a tournament for like a few minutes. It only lasts a few minutes, that kind of euphoric feeling.”
Schauffele is craving that winning feeling after failing to hit the heights of his two major wins in 2024.
The world number three has not won a tournament since lifting the Claret Jug a year ago and has not even managed a top-five finish in 12 tournaments this year.
Shane Lowry is another former winner hoping to recreate his career high when he stormed to victory amidst a sea of Irish flags at Portrush back in 2019 — the first hosting of the event on the island of Ireland for 68 years.
Lowry’s victory is now commemorated in a mural in the town of Portrush, but he joked he is glad not to have to drive past it every day on his commute to the course.
“When I won here in 2019 it was very special and it was an amazing day for the country and everyone around me, but it didn’t change me as a person,” said Lowry.
“When the mural was put on the wall I didn’t think I was immortalised. I’m just myself, I’m just okay at golf and I’ve gotten to achieve what I did in the sport.”
Ryder Cup places are also on the line for most of the European and US players this week with only Scheffler and McIlroy so far guaranteed of their places at Bethpage, New York in September.
Two-time champion Padraig Harrington of Ireland will hit the opening tee shot at 6:35 am local time, playing with Northern Irish youngster Tom McKibbin and Denmark’s Nicolai Hojgaard.
AFP
