Rory McIlroy eager to tackle Scottish Open after break from PGA Tour ‘grind'
Masters champion McIlroy has taken a break since finishing in a tie for sixth at the Travelers Championship last month, which saw a welcome upturn in form following a testing run since his Augusta triumph.
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Having settled into a new family home in Wentworth, McIlroy feels being able to get away from the 'grind' of the PGA Tour circuit has sharpened his focus on a strong run again in North Berwick ahead of his challenge for another Open crown at Royal Portrush.
'The one thing I would say about the last couple of weeks is I felt like I could detach a little bit more and sort of hide in a way,' the world number two said at a press conference.
'Sometimes you need that to completely get away. I feel like this world of golf can become all encompassing if you let it.
'Justin Rose and I came up here together yesterday and we were just chatting about how there is a detachment from the sort of week-in, week-out grind when you get back over here, from when you play PGA Tour for that sort of first 25 to 30 weeks of the year.
'It has been lovely to get back and see some familiar faces, and is the first time back playing in the UK since what happened at Augusta, which is a really nice feeling as well.'
McIlroy, who won the Scottish Open in 2023 and then finished tied fourth last year, added: 'I don't think I started out too well here, but I have learned how to play the course a little bit better.
'Obviously I had that great finish in 2023, then played well again last year, so I am looking forward to getting out there tomorrow.'
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The 42
4 hours ago
- The 42
Scheffler's masterpiece gives the Portrush crowds what they expected rather than what they wanted
THE CROWDS DESCENDED hoping to witness the irresistible from Rory McIlroy but instead Scottie Scheffler gave them the inevitable. The crowds racing behind Scheffler down the 18th fairway were neither as large nor jubilant as those chasing Shane Lowry six years ago, but it was no less a procession. Minutes later, Scheffler took his 267th and final stroke to win the Open Championship and reacted by hardly reacting at all; shaking the hands of his playing partner and hugging caddie Ted Scott before he turned, raised his arms and then he tossed his cap and embraced his wife and child. He returned a few minutes later to rattle through his victory speech, at one point checking his notes to remember to thank the town of Portrush, admitting he didn't see as much of it as he would have liked, given this was a business trip. Prior to Scheffler's procession, Rory McIlroy gave one last salute to the raucous crowds, later saying he got everything he wanted from his week back home, aside from the Claret Jug. Those huddled together on the other side of the ropes shared the same sentiment. McIlroy told the media last night he was unwinding between rounds by watching Oppenheimer, and was overheard today bending Harry Diamond's ear about some element of the bomb dropped on Hiroshima. Given it was McIlroy who last year suggested Scheffler should address his putting issues by switching to a mallet putter, perhaps he feels like Oppenheimer himself. I have become death, destroyer of fields. . . We always speculated about the extent to which Scheffler might dominate if he became a good putter, but this weekend he putted better than anyone else in the world. When Scheffler wobbled toward the end of his front nine today, he was saved solely by his putter. He won by four shots in the end, clear of Harris English, and gained almost two-and-a-half strokes with his putting alone. Scheffler admitted in his victory speech he was not the crowd favourite this week, but you were surprised he thought to mention it, given how impervious he appeared to it all week. Five hours earlier, McIlroy bounded down the first fairway to his customary fervour, with Scheffler following 10 minutes later. Rory found the fairway, and then Scottie found the first cut of rough. Though Rory could only make par, the crowds around him were looking at Scheffler's spot and conjuring up all manner of unconvincing hope. Advertisement Scheffler then banished it all by leaving his second shot a foot from the hole. He then birdied four and five, but didn't even have the decency to slam the door. Instead he grabbed the handle and occasionally creaked it ajar, less in invitation than in taunt. After he birdied the par-four fifth looking out at the coastal cliffs, Scheffler turned his back on the water and suddenly looked unsteady. He missed the green on the par-three sixth and then took a scenic route to the green on the par-five seventh, and yet he saved par twice with nerveless, 15-foot putts. He finally made a concession to the field on the eighth hole, taking two swipes to make it out of the bunker and finally missing a putt to make double-bogey, his first dropped shots since he played the 11th hole on Friday. A shout of Yessss was heard from the crowd as Scheffler's putt drifted by, and certainly some of the the galleries' ardour for McIlroy spun off to a coolness-come-hostility to the leader. McIlroy, though, quickly vacated himself from contention by taking his own double-bogey on 10. Instead the challenge was led by Chris Gotterup, fresh from winning last week's Scottish Open, who went out in three-under and got to within four of Scheffler. Wyndham Clark meanwhile made a charge, blasting his way to alongside Gotterup at 11-under. But they all needed Scheffler to capsize which was simply never going to happen. There has never been a better golfer at bouncing back from a dropped shot, and sure enough, Scheffler responded to his double with a birdie on the very next hole. Another birdie on the par-five 12th wiped the double clear. McIlroy continued his toil, picking up a shot on 12 but seeing a short putt for birdie on 14 slide by the hole. He picked up one final shot on 15, but Rory would provide no hometown lore. He played well for most of the four days, but Scheffler was simply far too good to handle. Rory McIlroy waves to the crowds for one last time. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo And while we recognise and celebrate sporting excellence, we are not always enthralled by it. In fact, the excellent aim to drain their art of all that might excite. But while the galleries around Royal Portrush were not given what they came for, they were given what they expected, and on these claustrophobic Masters Sundays, that's a stunning achievement by Scottie Scheffler. Shane Lowry memorably described Scheffler's game as 'impressively unimpressive', and having played alongside him on Thursday and Friday, he expounded further today. 'If Scottie's feet stayed stable and his swing looked like Adam Scott's, we'd be talking about him in the same words as Tiger Woods', said Lowry. 'I just think because it doesn't look so perfect, we don't talk about him like that.' Scottie doesn't thrill or magnetise like Tiger but he is ascending to his plane of greatness, and he will soon pass out all of his currently active peers as he does so. He may not be deeply fulfilled by this climb but that does not mean he will waver in it. File Royal Portrush away as another Scottie Scheffler masterpiece.
The 42
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'I've gotten everything I wanted out of this week apart from a Claret Jug'
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Irish Daily Mirror
5 hours ago
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Rory McIlroy will have to settle with a single major and a Career Grand Slam for 2025 after falling short at the Open Championship in Portrush. McIlroy seemed reinvigorated coming into this one after some patchy form post-Masters. And although he hit it far from his best, the five-time major winner did enough to get himself into the penultimate group on the final day of the Open. Trying to chase down eventual winner and world number one Scottie Scheffler, McIlroy finished in a tie for seventh and seven shots off Scheffler. But he still struck it rich, earning a cool €388,600 to add to his net worth, while Shane Lowry earned a not-so-shabby €58,800 for his week's work. Here is how much each player earned. Full Open Pay Out 1 Scottie Scheffler -17 $3,100,000 (€2,666,000)2 Harris English -13 $1,759,000 (€1,513,000)3 Chris Gotterup -12 $1,128,000 (€970,100)T4 Wyndham Clark -11 $730,667 (€628,800)T4 Matt Fitzpatrick -11 $730,667 (€628,800)T4 Haotong Li -11 $730,667 (€628,800)T7 Robert MacIntyre -10 $451,834 (€388,600)T7 Xander Schauffele -10 $451,834 (€388,600) T7 Rory McIlroy -10 $451,834 (€388,600) T10 Bryson DeChambeau -9 $304,650 (€261,000)T10 Corey Conners -9 $304,650 (€261,000)T10 Brian Harman -9 $304,650 (€261,000)T10 Russell Henley -9 $304,650 (€261,000)T14 Rickie Fowler -8 $240,000 (€206,400)T14 Nicolai Hojgaard -8 $240,000 (€206,400)T16 Jesper Svensson -7 $185,258 (€159,300)T16 Hideki Matsuyama -7 $185,258 (€159,300)T16 Tommy Fleetwood -7 $185,258 (€159,300)T16 John Parry -7 $185,258 (€159,300)T16 Justin Rose -7 $185,258 (€159,300)T16 Rasmus Hojgaard -7 $185,258 (€159,300)T16 Tyrrell Hatton -7 $185,258 (€159,300)T23 Maverick McNealy -6 $138,040 (€118,700)T23 J.J. Spaun -6 $138,040 (€118,700)T23 Lucas Glover -6 $138,040 (€118,700)T23 Dustin Johnson -6 $138,040 (€118,700)T23 Ludvig Aberg -6 $138,040 (€118,700)T28 Harry Hall -5 $119,950 (€103,200)T28 Oliver Lindell -5 $119,950 (€103,200)T30 Daniel Berger -4 $104,850 (€90,200)T30 Akshay Bhatia -4 $104,850 (€90,200)T30 Keegan Bradley -4 $104,850 (€90,200)T30 Kristoffer Reitan -4 $104,850 (€90,200)T34 Sergio Garcia -3 $86,517 (€74,400)T34 Aaron Rai -3 $86,517 (€74,400)T34 Jon Rahm -3 $86,517 (€74,400)T34 Justin Thomas -3 $86,517 (€74,400)T34 Christiaan Bezuidenhout -3 $86,517 (€74,400)T34 Lee Westwood -3 $86,517 (€74,400) T40 Shane Lowry -2 $68,340 (€58,800) T40 Jordan Spieth -2 $68,340 (€58,800)T40 Jason Kokrak -2 $68,340 (€58,800)T40 Takumi Kanaya -2 $68,340 (€58,800)T40 Nathan Kimsey -2 $68,340 (€58,800)T45 Matt Wallace -1 $51,186 (€44,000)T45 Matthew Jordan -1 $51,186 (€44,000)T45 Thomas Detry -1 $51,186 (€44,000)T45 Henrik Stenson -1 $51,186 (€44,000)T45 Jordan Smith -1 $51,186 (€44,000)T45 Sam Burns -1 $51,186 (€44,000)T45 Thriston Lawrence -1 $51,186 (€44,000)T52 Adrien Saddier E $44,350 (€38,100)T52 Sepp Straka E $44,350 (€38,100)T52 Marc Leishman E $44,350 (€38,100)T52 Sungjae Im E $44,350 (€38,100)T56 Phil Mickelson 1 $42,334 (€36,400)T56 Jhonattan Vegas 1 $42,334 (€36,400)T56 Tony Finau 1 $42,334 (€36,400)T59 Antoine Rozner 2 $41,550 (€35,700)T59 Justin Leonard 2 $41,550 (€35,700)T61 Dean Burmester 3 $41,100 (€35,300)T61 Romain Langasque 3 $41,100 (€35,300)T63 Riki Kawamoto 4 $40,280 (€34,600)T63 Andrew Novak 4 $40,280 (€34,600)T63 Viktor Hovland 4 $40,280 (€34,600)T63 Ryggs Johnston 4 $40,280 (€34,600)T63 Francesco Molinari 4 $40,280 (€34,600)68 Jacob Skov Olesen 6 $39,400 (€33,900)69 Matti Schmid 8 $39,100 (€33,600) 70 Sebastian Soderberg 11 $38,900 (€33,500)
