'Enjoy the journey'

Legacy does not concern Rory McIlroy.

The 37-year-old is fresh from scaling his latest Augusta mountain, going back-to-back at the Masters in his usual rollercoaster ride style.

Ben Hogan, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player, Tom Watson and Nick Faldo have all won the Masters and The Open in the same year, while Mark O’Meara completed the second half of that double here at Royal Birkdale in 1998.

McIlroy’s name is safe among those greats however the rest of his career plays out. A Grand Slam is in the bag. He has no more worlds to conquer.

But for the time being, as determined as he is to add a second Claret Jug to his collection, he is not letting himself get drawn into how he will be reflected on in years down the line.

“I don't really care,” he said. “I would like to think that the people that love and care about me think a certain way of me, but I’ll be long gone, I don't think I'll be seeing what people say about me. I'll be six feet under.

“It would be a pretty unfulfilling pursuit if you're just chasing records and chasing results.

“You have to enjoy the process. You have to enjoy the journey to get there. I've learned that the hard way at times by chasing results and chasing records too much.”

McIlroy has also learned to embrace the goodwill that comes his way every time he steps on to the course at The Open.

Twelve months ago, he had the weight of a nation on his shoulders. He may not have landed the Claret Jug at Royal Portrush but he dealt with the expectation of a home crowd in a much more composed manner than 2019. The roars that greeted his 56-foot putt for eagle on the 12th in his third round have only just died down.

The ‘local hero’ tag falls on Tommy Fleetwood this time around but McIlroy feels his Ryder Cup teammate is well equipped to handle the pressure.

“It's a great environment but tough in a way that you just feel the extra expectation on your shoulders, and you feel like you're trying to play well for everyone else and not for yourself,” he said.

“There is already enough pressure on anyone in this field to play well for themselves, so to add that extra layer on top of that is always pretty difficult.

“I feel like Tommy's more level-headed than I am and maybe won't fall into that trap like I did in 2019. It always seems like it takes me one go round to get it right.

“It will be interesting to see. I'm playing with Matt (Fitzpatrick) tomorrow, but I think a lot of those guys are pretty level-headed, and they'll go out there and stick to their routines and do their thing.

“It would be great for them all to have a great week because obviously with England in the World Cup and everything that's going on, it would just be an amazing atmosphere.”

McIlroy’s last visit to Royal Birkdale, in 2017, resulted in a share of fourth after a final-round 67, which left McIlroy rueing a ‘lost opportunity’.

It brought his major drought to almost three years. Even then, he was describing it as ‘too long’ for a player of his quality, which goes a fair way to explaining the outpouring of emotion in Augusta eight years later.

Birkdale is a different beast nowadays and McIlroy is a fan of the changes that have been made.

“I really like the 5th hole,” he said. “I like the change to the 7th.

"It creates options for if you do miss the green, whether it's a putter, a bump-and-run, some guys might choose lob wedge.

“What we all know, even going back to Shinnecock a few weeks ago, when you give professional golfers options and you can create a little bit of doubt in their minds in terms of should I play this shot or that shot, that's when things start to get fun, especially for the viewer - not so much for us!

“That, to me, is the sign of a good championship test.”

It is one he will hope to pass with flying colours. And whatever his thoughts on the matter, another Claret Jug would only further cement that fabled legacy.