The Open 2025: Historic homecoming beckons for McIlroy

The final major of 2025 is here.

The Open Championship returns to the shores of Northern Ireland as Royal Portrush plays host. There is a significant buzz around the tournament as Rory McIlroy is set to play in front of an adoring home crowd as a Grand Slam winner and the Masters Champion for the first time.

Golf fans, especially the Irish, will be hoping Portrush can recreate the magic of the 2019 Open at the same venue.

This year’s Open is a significantly special week for McIlroy playing just up the road from where he grew up. Speaking to the press earlier in the week, McIlroy revealed the opportunity of a major win on home soil was top of his 2025 list when he sat down to review his schedule at the beginning of the season.

"When I was looking at the calendar for 2025, this was the tournament that was circled even more so than the Masters for different reasons," he said.

McIlroy missed the cut back in 2019 when The Open Championship returned to Northern Ireland after a 68-year absence. It was a shock to many as McIlroy famously broke the course record at Royal Portrush in 2005 as a 16-year-old. A record which is unlikely to be matched.

The 2019 Open was a significant learning curve for McIlroy though. He admitted he let the pressure get to him and mentally wasn’t prepared for the ovation he received on the first tee in 2019.

"I was a little surprised and taken back by the ovation on the first tee. Geez, these people really want me to win so that brought its own pressure and internally from myself, not wanting to let people down. I guess it’s something I didn’t mentally prepare for that week," he added.

Rory’s woes in 2019 were quickly forgotten, as the golf world revelled in the magic of his close friend and fellow countrymen, Shane Lowry, securing his maiden major by six strokes. A victory worthy of the 68 years Irish golf fans waited for the major to return to the island’s shores.

McIlroy will be hoping to replicate Lowry’s heroics in 2019 to top of a fairytale homecoming for the Grand Slam winner. Even after a Grand Slam, pressure and expectation continue to shadow McIlroy.

The Open Championship is special and the only major exclusively associated with links golf courses. It is one time in the calendar we get to witness the world’s best battle it out on golf’s oldest courses.

Winning an Open Championship is a difficult task. The last back-to-back winner of the Championship is another Irishman, Padraig Harrington, who won successive championships in 2007 & 2008.

Since 2008, The Open has had a different winner every year with Ernie Els the only dual winner in that time when adding 2012 to his 2002 triumph.

The Favourites

Although talk of the town, Rory McIlroy ($6) is not the bookies’ favourite. The Masters Champions’ form took an unexpected turn post Augusta leaving Rory out of contention at multiple tournaments. McIlory has steadied the ship in recent weeks and topped it off with an impressive T2 finish at the Scottish Open last weekend.

No surprise, Scottie Scheffler ($5.5) once again is the bookies favourite. The World No.1 was slow to pick up speed early in 2025 but since March, Scottie has not finished outside of the top 10 of a tournament and has three wins to his name including a major, The PGA Championship, in that time.

Rounding out the Top five favourites for the week are Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm and Ludvig Aberg ($15 for all). DeChambeau’s form has stuttered since missing the cut at last month’s US Open. Rahm continues to prove he is back to his best in 2025 with a 2nd place finish in front of his home crowd at LIV Andalucia in Spain. Aberg’s form has been inconsistent in 2025 but on his day, Aberg is one of the best young players in the game.

The Australians

Australia boasts a strong contingent of nine players in the field this week with Lucas Herbert the last to qualify – winning one of the final qualifying tournaments at the beginning of July. Herbert joins Aussie major winners - Jason Day, Adam Scott and Cam Smith plus Australian PGA Championship winner, Elvis Smylie among others.

Smith has dominated the headlines in the lead up to this week. The 2022 Open Champion has struggled in 2025 with critics questioning whether his shock move to the LIV Tour back in 2022 was the correct one for his career. The Queenslander has failed to make the cut at any of this year’s majors and sunk to career-worst world ranking of 202.

Veterans Day and Scott stand out as the serious contenders amongst the Australian contingent. Day is the top ranked Australian sitting at 30th in the world and battled tough conditions to finish T2 at the 2023 Open Championship. Scott’s performance at the US Open earlier this year proved he still has more to give and has the experience to make it happen in tough conditions. Both players’ games have been trending positively this year and they are proven performers in tough conditions.

The Outside Chances

Recent history of The Open has been dominated by the US with Americans winning three of the last four Championships. You have to expect the Europeans will want to buck this trend – especially with the Ryder Cup fast approaching. Englishmen Tommy Fleetwood and Tyrell Hatton are the best outside chances.

Tommy Fleetwood agonisingly missed out on a playoff for the Travelers Championship last month, missing a short putt on the final hole. A first win on the PGA Tour still eludes the English veteran. In 2019, Fleetwood finished T2 behind Lowry. Fleetwood is a player who boasts great control of the golf ball even in tough conditions - a very value valuable skill to have coming into this week given the unpredictable nature of weather in Northern Ireland.

Tyrell Hatton finished T6 in 2019's Open Championship. He is a player who relishes playing in links conditions – winning the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship three times and boasting an impressive record at the Scottish Open before switching to the LIV Tour. Hatton proved he is still up to it in tough conditions with a T4 finish at the US Open early this year. Hatton's hot headedness proved to be invaluable at the US Open as he battled through four brutal rounds of golf and late into the last round, he was in contention.

Where to watch

Every round of The Open Championship is LIVE & Exclusive on FOX SPORTS, available on Kayo Sports.

Round 1
Thursday 3.30pm - 5.30am Friday
Featured Groups 6pm - 5am Friday
Live From The Open Friday 5.30am - 8am

Round 2
Friday 3.30pm - 5.30am Saturday
Featured Groups 6pm - 5am Saturday
Live From The Open Saturday 5.30am - 8am

Round 3
Saturday 7pm - 5am Sunday
Featured Groups 11.15pm - 5am Sunday
Live From The Open Sunday 5am - 7am

Final Round
Sunday 6pm - 4am Monday
Featured Groups 9pm - 4am Monday

Live From The Open - Monday 4am - 6am