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Rory McIlroy has laid down the gauntlet to his rivals at the Genesis Scottish Open — insisting he is now back to his very best.
McIlroy roared up the leaderboard yesterday with an impressive round of 66 at The Renaissance, moving him into a share of the lead heading into today’s final round.
He is joined on 11-under par by Chris Gotterup of America, with former US Open champions Wyndham Clark and Matt Fitzpatrick among the chasing pack just two shots back.
But McIlroy fired an ominous warning to the rest of the field, with the Masters champion insisting that his game is now at the same level as when he won at Augusta.
‘I think I’m pretty close to being back to the level I was at going into the Masters,’ said McIlroy, who is looking to land a second Scottish Open title after winning here two years ago.
‘I think I’ve had a little bit of a lull, which I feel is understandable. So I’m just getting back to the level that I know that I can play at.
McIlroy enjoys the Scottish sunshine after moving up the leaderboard
Chris Gotterup sits alongside the Northern Irishman atop the leaderboard
‘It is my first realistic chance to win since the Masters. I’ve had a great season. I won at Pebble. I won the Players (Championship, at Sawgrass).
‘When you do something that you’ve been dreaming your whole life to do (the career grand slam), it was a huge moment in my life. I I just needed that little bit of time after that.
‘To be back here for last couple weeks, and feel like I could actually digest all of it, I feel like I came to this tournament with renewed enthusiasm and excitement for the rest of the year.
‘Once I made those three birdies in a row to finish on Thursday night, it felt like: “Okay, I’m in the golf tournament and I can build on that momentum”. That’s what I’ve done over the last couple days.
‘Hopefully we can get things finished here and be able to watch a little bit of the Wimbledon final. That would be nice.’
The tee times have been adjusted for today’s final round due to an expected Haar rolling in off the Firth of Forth amid soaring temperatures.
McIlroy plays his approach shot on the scenic par-four 12th hole at The Renaissance
A two-tee start will be in operation in order to condense the times as much as possible, with McIlroy playing in the final group alongside rivals Clark and Gotterup.
With the course baking in the red-hot temperatures and starting to play very firm, McIlroy believes this is the best it has ever played for the Scottish Open.
A critic of The Renaissance at times in the past, he said: ‘I think the best it’s ever played is this year because of how firm it is.
‘It’s a real fiery links test that you have to, or at least you have the option to play the ball on the ground if you want to.
‘This golf course has evolved a lot over the time we’ve been coming here and it’s certainly grown on me, not just because of the results, but I think it plays more and more like a links course every year we come back.’
