With just two weeks left, finishing touches are being made in Portrush as the town prepares for the oldest and one of the most prestigious tournaments of golf. The Open Championship is set to return to the Royal Portrush from July 17 – July 20, for the 2025 season, after it last hosted the event in 2019, where Shane Lowry won his first major title. But this time, the pressure is on his close friend and local favourite, Rory McIlroy, to claim the title. McIlroy, who has been facing a slump since his career grand slam achievement in the Masters 2025, is currently going through a mental reset. While he works on finding his motivation, fans and critics are wondering if he will be back in form again and prove his resilience in a way that even Tiger Woods couldn’t.
The pressure is on Rory McIlroy
As seen on a candid chat on Golf Channel, Ryan Lavner and Damon Hack discussed what the “biggest storyline” ahead of the final major for the 2025 season is. “It’s Rory! Rory, Rory, Rory,” exclaimed Lavner. And we agree. While it is homecoming for McIlroy, ever since his 2025 Masters win, fans know that the World No.2 has a lot more to give. He waited nearly a decade to achieve his career grand slam, and it proved his mental resilience and toughness through the years. While fans thought this meant greater things to come for the champion, it was hardly the case.
After his win, we saw a string of disappointing finishes from McIlroy, including a missed cut at the 2025 RBC Canadian Open. “Sometimes it’s hard to find the motivation to get back on the horse and go again,” McIlroy confessed ahead of the event at TPC Toronto. And it is indeed hard to find it again, as Lavner suggested, that it was something even Tiger Woods couldn’t do after he achieved his ‘Tiger Slam’ in 2001 —”How do you then get the courage, the encouragement, the motivation, everything else, all the excitement to just go again. Tiger Woods couldn’t do it. After the Tiger Slam, he did not have a top-10 at a major championship for the rest of the year.”
Tiger Woods, after he achieved the Tiger Slam in 2001, struggled to find the motivation to finish within the top 10 in the rest of the majors that year, the last being the 2008 U.S. Open. However, he did manage to win the 2019 Masters after 9 years. The Tiger Slam is similar to a career grand slam, with the consecutive major championship wins not being in the same calendar year.
“Rory’s finding that difficult as well,” continued Lavner. And it’s true. We’re all aware of his controversy at Quail Hollow, where he finished tied 47th. Even at Oakmont, McIlroy struggled to find his form and finished tied 19th. Apart from the physical fatigue, McIlroy has also been battling the backlash for constantly skipping media duties.
Never give up on your dreams. Keep coming back. Keep working hard. pic.twitter.com/YFIWrvAnUZ
— Rory McIlroy (@McIlroyRory) April 16, 2025
But amid all this, fans are expecting a return in form as McIlroy continues to rest ahead of The Open. And since it’s an event at home for him, motivation should come automatically to play in front of a crowd that admires him deeply. “The Open Championship at home. If you can’t get motivated for that, he is not likely to get motivated for anything,” added Lavner, hinting that McIlroy’s finish at Portrush will decide what the future holds for him.
With the Ryder Cup not too far away either, McIlroy will need to do everything it takes to not just put his game in place, but also figure out his mental strength on the course.“Obviously, the Ryder Cup on American soil as well, Bethpage Black, you know the sort of environment he’s going to find himself in. If he can’t get up for those two events, I don’t know if it’s ever going to happen. But if it is going to happen, it’s going to happen at Portrush, and certainly gonna happen at Bethpage Black,” expressed Lavner, highlighting the importance of the two events before the season ends. While only time will tell what the future holds for McIlroy, let’s take a look at how he’s performed at the Open before.
McIlroy’s performances in the past
As McIlroy heads back to Royal Portrush in 2025, he carries the weight of unfinished business. Missing the cut on home soil in 2019 after that infamous first-round 79 was a bitter homecoming, even though he responded with a stunning 65 the following day. Following that, his best performance until now at the Open was in 2022, where he finished solo 3rd, when it was played at the Old Course at St.Andrews.
Last year, Rory McIlroy missed the cut at the major when it was hosted at Royal Troon, after carding 11-over par over two days. It was only in 2014 that we witnessed McIlroy’s best form at the Open, when he lifted the trophy at the Royal Liverpool. But now with renewed confidence and a mentally honed resilience, the stage is set. McIlroy isn’t just returning to clear a scorecard, but to complete a story, reigniting his pursuit of a sixth major and a second Claret Jug at the course that still haunts him. Will Royal Portrush be the scene of redemption, glory…and perhaps a legacy-defining moment for McIlroy?
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