It was a return six years in the making, and it was a return that perfectly encapsulated Rory McIlroy. Making the trek back to Royal Portrush for The Open Championship -- now as a career grand slam winner -- the Northern Irishman experienced a topsy-turvy day as the hard stuff came easy and the easy stuff came hard.

Second round groupings and start times at Royal Portrush including Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler - McIlroy, playing with Justin Thomas and Tommy Fleetwood, is one of the early starters in Friday’s second round and sits just three shots behind the leaders overnight,

McIlroy didn't play his best Thursday at Royal Portrush but shot 1-under 70 and is three shots off the 18-hole lead.

Six years after recording a quadruple-bogey 8 on No. 1 at Royal Portrush, Rory McIlroy carded a bogey-5 en route to a 1-under 70 that left him right in the mix at the Open. "I didn't feel like I was walking into the unknown this time around,

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