Rory McIlroy, the world number three golfer and reigning Amgen Irish Open champion, returns to his beloved Royal County Down links this week. While he enjoys playing on familiar territory, McIlroy admits to feeling the pressure of performing in front of his home crowd, a challenge he's struggled with in the past.
Rory McIlroy is an Amgen Irish Open winner and the world's number three ranked golfer is the tournament favourite this week.McIlroy is back on the stunning Royal County Down links that he used to make a bee-line for when he was young and carefree and playing with his pals.READ MORE:Shane Lowry reacts after ending Kingspan sponsorship in wake of Grenfell report
The 35-year-old is back among his own. He felt that support like never before when the Open Championship finally returned to Portrush in 2019. That phenomenal backing almost pushed him to a miraculous Friday cut-line recovery. "It's a bit of a double-edged sword," said McIlroy. "I get the buzz but I also feel the added pressure of trying to perform at home, something I've honestly struggled with in the past.
"There's a lot of golf courses that we play on Tour I don't think really do that. You have to play quite a one-dimensional game. To have a golf course like this that provides so many options is a real treat."
Golf Rory Mcilroy Amgen Irish Open Royal County Down Home Pressure
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