Rory McIlroy trying his ‘hardest’ to ignore fans at The Open ahead of Claret Jug shootout

Rory McIlroy faces Viktor Hovland at St Andrews for the Claret Jug in a final-round shootout for the 150th Open and admits he is living out his dream but is having to block out the noise from the rowdy fans in Scotland. McIlroy will head out in the final group on Sunday as co-leader with the young Norwegian revelling in the fact there could be nowhere finer to end his eight-year Major drought than the Home of Golf.

“It’s unbelievably cool to have a chance to win The Open at St Andrews. It’s what dreams are made of and I’m going to try to make a dream come true tomorrow,” McIlroy said.

“I’ve got myself in a great position after three days. I’ve finished off enough golf tournaments in my time to feel like I know what to do tomorrow. But nothing’s given to you and I have to go out there and earn it just like I’ve earned everything else in my career.”

McIlroy and Hovland matched each other blow for blow in the same third-round group as both posted 66s to move four shots clear of the rest of the field. The McIlroy show included an incredible chip-in eagle from a pot bunker at the 10th.

But he revealed afterwards he had deliberately kept his celebrations in check with Dustin Johnson and Scottie Scheffler close by. “I tried not to be too animated because DJ and Scotty were trying to hit their tee shots on 11,” said McIlroy.

“I didn’t want to rile the crowd up too much because they wanted to hit their tee shots. But it was a big moment for sure. It was skill to get it somewhere close but it was luck that it went in the hole. You need a little bit of luck every now and again, especially in these big tournaments and that was a nice bonus.”

The crowd went wild regardless. Their backing for McIlroy was compared to playing at an away Ryder Cup by Hovland but as much as he appreciates it the Northern Irishman is trying to shut out all the extraneous noise.

“The support that I’ve got this week has been absolutely incredible. I appreciate it and I feel it out there. But at the same time I’m trying my hardest just to stay in my own little world because that’s the best way for me to get the best out of myself,” he said.

“I try to acknowledge as much as I can but I’m just trying to stay in my own little bubble and I just have to do that for one more day. I call it my little cocoon and I’m just trying to stay in my little cocoon for the whole week.”

Hovland is chasing his first Major win and the 24-year-old admitted he felt in unfamiliar territory during his third round. “I was thinking” ‘what the hell am I doing here?’” said Hovland.

“I mean, it’s pretty crazy from where I grew up and so far away from playing the PGA Tour, European Tour, for that matter Major Championships so just to be here is very special but to have a chance to win one. I have to pinch myself. But that doesn’t mean I’m going to hold back tomorrow.”