McIlroy battles for unlikely Open shot and late title push

Deep into day three of The Open, Rory McIlroy continues to ride a wave of momentum and support. He stands at six under par, just four shots back from the lead, with each birdie sparking thunderous cheers across Portrush. The energy is electric, almost surreal. Then, things take an even stranger turn.

McIlroy sends a drive into the rough at the 11th. For a moment, he worries his ball is lost, only to get confirmation from the official. Better yet, he’ll be playing from flattened ground. He sets up, takes aim—and as his ball lifts into the air, a buried Titleist from another player suddenly pops up beside him.

McIlroy grins in disbelief, telling his caddy, “I was standing on a golf ball!”

“That’s never happened to me before,” he admits afterward. “I had no idea there was a ball near mine. It was just bizarre. I thought I’d get a clean shot, but then I saw my ball spinning into the wind.”

The mishap costs him a bogey, and to make matters worse, the cheers from the crowd confirm Scottie Scheffler has surged to 12 under—seven shots ahead. But after the frustration comes a moment of brilliance.

On the 12th, McIlroy lines up a 56-foot eagle putt downhill, left to right. The ball rolls steadily before appearing to slow short of the hole. “It’s gotta drop,” murmurs a spectator by the green. It does—before nearly stopping again. “It’s gotta drop,” he repeats. The roar of the crowd says the rest: the ball disappears into the cup. Fans erupt, arms flinging into the air as chants of “Rory! Rory!” echo around him. He moves to seven under, his smile lighting up the course.

“That eagle on 12 was one of the best moments of my career—the loudest roar I’ve ever heard,” he reflects later. “Getting those shots back immediately was huge.”

The crowds following McIlroy were so dense that many relied on sounds and reactions to follow the action—bursts of applause, shouts of encouragement. Early on, there was a sense that something special was unfolding.

Excitement surged as McIlroy birdied the 1st, 2nd, and 4th. But opportunities slipped away. The 375-yard 5th, one of the easier holes all week, saw him miss a birdie after landing in light rough. Another chance vanished at the par-five 7th, which had yielded low scores all day.

Still, a birdie at the 15th sealed a 66, putting him at eight under and tied for fourth—six shots behind Scheffler. But McIlroy hasn’t given up hope.

“The energy out there was unreal,” he said of the crowd. “It was all the fuel I needed.”