The Open offers extra Ryder Cup points, and the U.S. captain's second round at Royal Portrush put him in position to gobble up some.

HOME HERO: Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland made a late birdie for a 70 and was three shots behind. The last time he played the British Open at Royal Portrush, he made an 8 on the first hole, shot 79 and wound up missing the cut.

Rory McIlroy shot 1-under 70 in the first round of the British Open at Royal Portrush that is also serving as a homecoming for the Northern Irish star.

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Of the 20 LIV golfers in the field at the 2025 British Open, Phil Mickelson turned in perhaps the most surprising first round.

The "Golden Bear" and 18-time major winner won the first of his three Opens and completed the first of his three career grand slams along the southeastern Scottish coast in 1966, then called the par-71 layout "the best golf course in Britain."

The jug goes to the winner of the Open Championship, who is otherwise known as the champion golfer of the year. The face belongs to Shane Lowry, who won the Open in 2019, the last time it was played in Portrush, a seaside town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland.

Just as a certain Northern Irishman’s golf ball flew left, but not too far left, and safely settled in the rough, the sun peeked ou