Rory McIlory fired his way into a share of the lead at the Scottish Open and then declared he is ‘pretty close’ to the level that saw him win the Masters.
While that sentiment felt like an exaggeration, it is only a minor one, as clearly his game has jumped up a couple of notches across three rounds at the Renaissance Club. With the Open commencing next week, the improvement is timely.
His 66 on Saturday ensured he will part of the final pairing with American Chris Gotterup, the world No 158 who shot 70 and remains unflustered at the head of one of the strongest fields in golf.
He and McIlroy are tied at 11 under par, two clear of a cluster including Matt Fitzpatrick, Wyndham Clark and Marco Penge.
McIlroy said: ‘I think I’m pretty close to being back to the level I was at going into the Masters. 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.
‘It’s my first realistic chance to win after the Masters. I’ve had a great season. I won at Pebble Beach. I won the Players’ Championship. When you do something that you’ve been dreaming your whole life to do, it (the Masters) was a huge moment in my life, my career.
‘I think I just needed that little bit of time. I feel like I came to this tournament with renewed enthusiasm and excitement for the rest of the year.’
McIlroy’s round included five birdies and only one bogey, with his putting once more the strongest aspect of his game. While his driving accuracy remains a little off, the margins are narrowing.
‘For me with the driver, as long as the misses aren’t big, I’m happy,’ he said. ‘I haven’t had a lot of big misses with the driver. When the course gets firm and bouncy, I hit my best drive on 15, it didn’t hit the fairway, but it was in the first cut. Sometimes the stats can be a little bit misleading.’
Ludvig Aberg briefly threatened to set the pace on Saturday, but coughed up five strokes in three holes from the 12th, including a three-putt from 18ft to start the slide and a triple-bogey seven at the next.
His 71 left him at eight under. Scottie Scheffler is two further back after a 69, with ongoing questions about how suited he is to links golf ahead of Portrush.
Englishman Penge’s round of 69 elevated him to a share of third and continued his return from a three-month ban at the turn of the year for betting on golf tournaments.
