Rory goes full circle with return to home after Slam

RORY McIlroy may have begun another year with the ambition of completing a career Grand Slam but a return to his home Open at Royal Portrush was the one week he was really looking forward to.

- By CARL MARKHAM

The 36-year-old did duly end an 11-year wait to add a Masters green jacket to his collection, however, it was the thought of returning to the course where he shot 61 as a 16-year-old but badly let down himself - and the huge support he had - by failing to make the cut here in 2019 which had his attention.

He spoke about learning from that experience, having allowed emotion to get the better of him and promptly hitting his opening tee shot out of bounds, and appears to have emerged from his post-Masters comedown.

"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 the Northern Irishman, who grew up an hour's drive away in Holywood.

"It's lovely to be coming in here already with a major and everything else that's happened this year.

"How good would it be to bookend the major season: win the first one, win the last one?"