Rory McIlroy shares the real reason behind his flying Scottish Open start
GOLF AUSTRALIAN OPEN, Northern Ireland s Rory McIlroy looks on after teeing off on the 3rd hole during round three of the Australian Open Golf tournament at the Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Melbourne, Saturday, December 6, 2025. NO ARCHIVING, EDITORIAL USE ONLY MELBOURNE VICTORIA AUSTRALIA PUBLICATIONxNOTxINxAUSxNZLxPNGxFIJxVANxSOLxTGA Copyright: xJAMESxROSSx 20251206197727143457
GOLF AUSTRALIAN OPEN, Northern Ireland s Rory McIlroy looks on after teeing off on the 3rd hole during round three of the Australian Open Golf tournament at the Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Melbourne, Saturday, December 6, 2025. NO ARCHIVING, EDITORIAL USE ONLY MELBOURNE VICTORIA AUSTRALIA PUBLICATIONxNOTxINxAUSxNZLxPNGxFIJxVANxSOLxTGA Copyright: xJAMESxROSSx 20251206197727143457
Rory McIlroy strongly opened the Genesis Scottish Open, and the world No. 2 believes spending more time with his family has played a big role in his fast starts this season.
Speaking to Patricia Duffy of Golf Channel on Thursday, McIlroy opened up about how the lighter schedule has affected his life on and off the course.
"The benefits are seeing my family more. I feel like I have a bit more balance in my life," said McIlroy. "Even though I have played pretty sparsely over the past few months, the starts to my tournaments have all been really good.”
The 37-year-old carded five birdies and an eagle to register a 5-under-par 65 in the opening round. With that impressive performance, he took an early share of the clubhouse lead.
via Usta
260412 Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland celebrate with his parents, wife Erica and daughter Poppy after winning the 2026 Masters Golf Tournament on April 12, 2026 in Augusta. Photo: Petter Arvidson / BILDBYRAN / kod PA / PA1196 golf masters bbeng the masters augusta jubel *** 260412 Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland celebrate with his parents, wife Erica and daughter Poppy after winning the 2026 Masters Golf Tournament on April 12, 2026 in Augusta Photo Petter Arvidson BILDBYRAN kod PA PA1196 golf masters bbeng the masters augusta jubel PUBLICATIONxNOTxINxSWExNORxFINxDEN Copyright: PETTERxARVIDSON BB260412PA286
McIlroy has featured at just four events in the last three months. However, it doesn’t look like he's out of pace.
"I thought for the most part I played well. I drove the ball particularly well, and I started to see that at Shinnecock Hills a couple of weeks ago. If I keep putting the ball in play, I feel like I can attack golf courses and create scoring opportunities. I did that today,” McIlroy added, as reported by Patricia Duffy of Golf Channel.
After a gap of two weeks since the U.S. Open, McIlroy is featuring at just his 10th PGA Tour-sanctioned event of this season at the Renaissance Club.
The reduced playing schedule has been beneficial to the Irishman, as he grabbed back-to-back Masters titles at Augusta earlier this year.
McIlroy has also enjoyed plenty of success at the Renaissance Club, another reason he entered this week's tournament with confidence.
Rory McIlroy's previous Scottish Open success
Three years back, McIlroy enjoyed his first victory on Scottish soil. It came down to the last hole, where he hit one of the best shots of his career.
“It came off absolutely perfectly. Probably the best shot I hit all year. It was exactly the way I wanted to play it. When you hit a shot like that, I felt like I deserved to hole that putt to finish it off,” McIlroy said in a post shared by DP World Tour on X.
The Irishman was 201 yards from the pin and then hit a two-iron approach shot to 10 feet. He landed the putt and secured a one-stroke win over Scotland’s very own Bob MacIntyre.
Finishing at 15-under for the tournament, McIlroy won the 2023 Genesis Scottish Open.
What are your thoughts on McIlroy’s solid start at this week’s Scottish Open? Share them in the comments.
Written by
Avishek Sarkar
Edited by
Rudra Dubey