Rory McIlroy ready to 'embrace' bad weather as he chases first win on Scottish soil

He’s already battled wet conditions, faces an early rise on Saturday morning and could be battered by the wind on Sunday. But “bring it on” was effectively the message from Rory McIlroy as he looked forward to heading into the weekend as the halfway leader in the Genesis Scottish Open.

Rory McIlroy smiles on the fifth green during day two of the Genesis Scottish Open at The Renaissance Club in East Lothian. Picture: Octavio Passos/Getty Images.

In a round that ended in miserable conditions at The Renaissance Club, McIlroy added a 66 to his opening 64 to hold a one-shot cushion over Englishman Tyrrell Hatton and Korean duo Tom Kim and Ben An in the $9 million Rolex Series event. World No 1 Scottie Scheffler is among a posse of big names lurking on the leaderboard, but it’s been a polished performance so far from McIlroy.

“I played really well,” said the 34-year-old of his second-day effort, which contained five birdies, with his sole dropped shot coming at the par-3 17th. “I felt as though my putter was really good yesterday and I holed some good ones and it was more my ball-striking today. So it is nice to know that both ends of the game are in good shape.”

The Northern Irishman hasn’t won on Scottish soil and, though there’s still a long way to go in this particular assignment, that goal is certainly in his sights before turning his attention to next week’s 151st Open at Royal Liverpool, where he won the last of his four majors in 2014.

“I’m in a great position going into the weekend,” he said, smiling. “I wish I could be a couple of shots better, but, overall, I am really pleased with how the last two days have gone. I keep saying that ‘yes, we are all looking forward to next week’, but I want to go and win this tournament over the weekend.

“I pride myself on being a global player. I’ve never won in Scotland before, I don’t think. I’ve had a tonne of close calls at the Dunhill and The Open. So it would be nice to get my first win in Scotland.”

Due to thunderstorms expected to hit Scotland’s Golf Coast on Saturday afternoon, the third-round tee times have been moved forward, with the leaders heading out around 9am. Then, for Sunday’s final circuit, the wind is expected to gust up to 40mph.

“It’s okay, it’s something that we are used to or tried to be prepared for,” he said of the expected conditions for the final 36 holes. “Oak Hill (in the PGA Championship in May) was probably the last time it was this rainy. We played and I fared okay, so I have some recent experience in these kind of conditions.

“I don’t mind. I’m just going to try and embrace whatever the conditions give us and however the golf course plays. But, from what I’ve seen of myself over the last two days I feel like I am well-equipped to handle it.”

Is there a danger of the groove he’s found in his swing being destroyed in zephyr-like conditions? “I don’t think so,” he insisted. “Whatever happens over the next two days, we’ve got three days going into Hoylake to sort of get back to baseline and go again. So no concerns about that.”

McIlroy made no secret of the fact that he wasn’t a fan of the Tom Doak-designed course when The Renaissance Club first hosted this event in 2019, though, in fairness, the weather was benign on that occasion and the turf rain-softened. He then missed the cut two years later.

“You only start to like places when you play better at them,” he said, laughing. “Look, it’s started to play a little more linksy and a little more challenging over the last couple of years. I know they’ve made some tweaks and it’s nice to play in a little breeze. The rough is up a little bit. It’s not too penal and it sort of gives you a feel for what real links golf is like, especially going into next week.”

McIlroy had talked earlier in the week about being as “close as I’ve been” to a return to winning ways in the majors. On the evidence so far, his game really does look tickety-boo.

“I felt really good about my swing all day,” he said. “I found something at the Travelers (his most recent outing on the PGA Tour) and I’ve got a really comfortable swing thought at the minute and I’ve carried it with me over the last few weeks. I definitely think it has helped me iron play and my wedge play in particular and I think that has showed over the last couple of days.”

While a number of birdie chances went abegging in his second circuit, some good par saves, notably on the seventh and ninth holes, evened things out. “I felt I was hitting good putts and felt I was hitting them where I wanted to,” he said. “I was either mis-reading it or not getting the speed right. They are not all going to drop, but hopefully I can make my fair share over the weekend.”

Hatton, a two-time Alfred Dunhill Links champion, moved into contention on the back of a best-of-the-day 62 while Kim, who finished third behind Xander Schauffele 12 months ago, made seven birdies in his 65. An, who missed a ten-footer at the last to join McIlroy in the lead, followed his 61 with a 70. Sam Burns, the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play champion, sits one further back alongside left-hander Brian Harman, with Scheffler, 51-year-old Padraig Harrington and young Dane Nicolai Hojgaard all on seven-under.

“Yeah, he is playing great,” observed McIlroy of Harrington. “No matter what tour he is playing on, whether it’s over with the old boys or back here with the young boys, he’s doing great. I’m looking forward to keeping an eye on him over the weekend as well.”