There was a moment in the middle of the afternoon Saturday at Royal Portrush where it still felt like anything was possible at the 2025 Open Championship. All scenarios were still on the table. Hope ran rampant around the property as the third round trundled on and player after player made birdie after birdie.

Rory McIlroy safely made the cut for the Open Championship at Royal Portrush, but he wasn't considered a legit contender. That all changed in the blink of an eye this afternoon. After carding a 2-under 69 in the second round,

Rory McIlroy's third-round charge at The Open Championship was derailed in bizarre fashion on Saturday when he unwittingly performed a trick shot at the 11th hole. With one swish of his club, McIlroy not only hit his designated ball out of the rough to the right of the fairway but also dug out another ball that had been buried underneath the turf.