3 hours ago
8
Rory McIlroy is in need of a bit of a shakeup. The Irishman has been struggling since his victory at The Masters in April and has one final major tournament left this season.
After donning his first ever green jacket, he did decently with playing partner Shane Lowry at the Zurich Classic match play event, had a top-ten at the Truist, fell out of the top-40 at the PGA Championship and missed the cut at the Canadian Open before a top-20 finish at Oakmont and a T-6 finish at the Travelers.
With the Genesis Scottish Open teeing off this week and a return to Northern Ireland and Royal Portrush for The Open Championship next week, McIlroy decided to achieve that shakeup by changing his appearance.
Rather than the normal short curls atop his head, the career Grand Slam winner opted for a shorter haircut which let out more of the grey hairs he's starting to grow.
The 36-year-old was seen with his hat off at The Renaissance Club in North Berwick to prepare for the tournament that he won back in 2023.
When faced with the chance to defend his title in 2024, he finished tied for fourth and four strokes behind winner Robert MacIntyre.
Rory McIlroy decided to shake up his appearance ahead of this week's Scottish Open
Rory's old haircut (L, seen last month at the Travelers) compared to his new one (R, this week)
McIlroy may hope that the change up snaps him out of a small slump in form post-Masters
A win could provide a necessary boost for McIlroy ahead of a trip across the water to his home country for the final major of the year.
McIlroy will hope to put up a better performance in County Antrim than he did when Royal Portrush last hosted The Open in 2019.
Despite winning The Players and the Canadian Open and finishing in the Top-10 at the PGA Championship at Bethpage Black and the US Open at Pebble Beach that year, McIlroy missed the cut in 2019 after a horrid opening-round 79.
It only prolonged a drought of major championship wins that McIlroy finally ended at Augusta National this spring.
