Rory McIlroy defied gusts of up to 50km/h to take a one shot lead into the final round of the Amgen Irish Open after a controlled performance at Royal County Down.
Despite a closing bogey, McIlroy carded a joint low round of 69 to sit on six-under-par and he will be in a final group that was once tipped for major championship Sundays alongside Matteo Manassero who ground out a 72 for five-under, two shots clear of Jordan Smith, Robert MacIntyre, Erik Van Rooyen and Rasmus Hojgaard.
“I definitely would have taken the score before I went out today. I think to shoot in the 60s today in those conditions, yeah, obviously a really good effort and that puts me in a good position going into tomorrow,” said the 35-year-old.
The Holywood man roared on by the bulk of the 15,000 crowds made the perfect start, hitting a drive and wedge to five feet for an eagle on the first and having laid down the gauntlet to the rest of the field he never looked back.
A bogey on the fifth was his only blemish of the day as McIlroy put on a measured display in the brutal conditions. A wedge and six foot putt saw him birdie the par-3 7th before a remarkable birdie from the right rough on 13 saw him take the outright lead.
A Manassero bogey on 17 left McIlroy two clear but he encountered problems on the 18th, missing the fairway with his drive which ultimately led to a shanked third from some heavy rough. A classy fourth from under the hospitality stand gave him a four footer for a remarkable par save but he was up and out of it early.
“Got off to the perfect start making 3 on 1. And then it was just a matter of trying to par as many holes as possible and if you picked up a birdie here and there, it was a bonus.”
McIlroy hasn’t had a top-10 finish since winning his first Irish Open title in 2016 and after a disastrous performance at the Open in Royal Troon he has looked much more up for the fight.
“It would be amazing to win. I’m excited to give myself a chance. The last couple times I’ve played in Northern Ireland, it hasn’t really panned out the way I wanted. So to play a good three days here and be in the final group and give myself a chance tomorrow.
“Yeah, I’m excited for the opportunity, and I can’t get too far ahead of myself, but yeah, I’m excited to go out there and give it my all tomorrow.”
There were some big moves made early by the Irish contingent with Tom McKibbin moving up a staggering 34 places into a share of 13th on level-par while Seamus Power moved up 26 places to just outside the top-20 on plus one.
McKibbin opened his round with a tap in eagle before a superb bogey on the 18th saw him sign for a 69 as he kept his faint hopes of a first home win alive, but perhaps more importantly, it has put him back in the frame for a strong finish as he looks to get his PGA Tour card bid back on track.
Power bookended his round with birdies in a level-par 71 to lie eight shots off the pace with the potential to break back into the world’s top-100 with a top-10 on Sunday.
There was disappointment for Shane Lowry however, who was unable to maintain his electric start where he opened his round with three successive birdies. The Offaly man stumbled from there dropping shots on the 4th and 5th before a double bogey on the 8th and a bogey on 10 left him punch drunk heading for home.
Lowry did manage to just about keep himself in the mix with a couple of birdies but bogeys on 15, 17 and 18 saw him slump to plus two after a likely tournament ending round of 74.
McIlroy played the Irish Open as an amateur in 2005 and opened with rounds of 71 and 81 as he missed the cut. In the latest act of symmetry this week, 17-year-old Roganstown star Seán Keeling got blown away by the wind as he fell to an 81 to lie on ten-over.
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