It was a return six years in the making, and it was a return that perfectly encapsulated Rory McIlroy. Making the trek back to Royal Portrush for The Open Championship -- now as a career grand slam winner -- the Northern Irishman experienced a topsy-turvy day as the hard stuff came easy and the easy stuff came hard.

Rory McIlroy, meanwhile, scrambled to an opening-round 70 to leave him in contention for the title on home turf, six years on from his struggles at the same venue. His opening tee shot in 2019 saw him go out of bounds, registering a quadruple-bogey on that hole on his way to 79 before going on to miss the cut.

Two days after the eye-opening deep riff on the meaning of life that world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler delivered in his pre-tournament press conference, he posted a 3-under-par 68 in the first round of the British Open Thursday at Portrush.

The first round of the 2025 Open Championship saw Royal Portrush giving the 156-player field all it could handle as ever-changing weather conditions allowed the Northern Ireland course to show off its strength against the best players in the world.

Scottie Scheffler is the No. 1 golfer in the world, but even he doesn't really understand the fuss. Just two days before the year's final major tees off, Scheffler admitted he doesn't understand "the point" of becoming the best golfer in the world - or an elite professional in any sport,

Rory McIlroy opened up on his disastrous start to the 2019 Open Championship at Royal Portrush, admitting he "tries to forget" about his first round at the event as Graeme McDowell places his bets on

How to watch every single shot from the biggest names in golf throughout Round 2 at the 2025 Open Championship