"One eye on next week"- Rory McIlroy eager to take on the Open Championship, looks past 2024 Scottish Open before it's over

Going into the final round of the 2024 Scottish Open, Rory McIlroy finds himself sitting in joint eighth place. The defending champion is currently sitting five shots back of the leader, Ludvig Aberg.

While Rory McIlroy does hope to finish atop the leaderboard this weekend, he already has his eye on next weekend. The 2024 Open Championship, the fourth and final major of the 2024 season, is all set to be held from July 18-21 at the Royal Troon.

Speaking about his confidence going into the final round today, McIlroy did not fail to mention that he was focusing on next week as well. He said (via Asap Sports):

"Yeah, I think so, easy to stay patient, knowing that the game is there. Easy to stay patient knowing that there's one eye on this week and ultimately one eye on next week, too. But would I love to go into next week, get myself right into the thick of things tomorrow."

Rory McIlroy is still in search of his first major win in over a decade. He lost out to Bryson DeChambeau at the 2024 US Open by just one stroke earlier this year. McIlroy will face DeChambeau once again at the Open Championship, alongside the likes of Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele, and others.

---

Rory McIlroy unhappy with his back nine performance at the Scottish Open

Rory McIlroy said that he was not exactly happy with his performance over the last three days of the tournament, especially over the back nine. He spoke about being unable to convert his chances on the back nine to rise the leaderboard at the Scottish Open.

"I think just converting the chances that I'm giving myself. If I look back the last two days, especially on the back nine, I've given myself some chances and I haven't converted. Felt like I have definitely left a few out there all three days but especially yesterday and today."

However, McIlroy is satisfied with his iron shots and still feels like he is in contention to possibly pick up a win during the final round of the tournament.

Ludvig Aberg carded a 64-64-65 to take the lead of the tournament with a score of -17. Home favorite Robert MacIntyre sits in sole second place, two shots behind the leader. Adam Scott is third in the tournament after round 3, with a score of -14.

The likes of Collin Morikawa, Sahith Theegala, and Sungjae Im also remain in the race for the 2024 Scottish Open victory.

The upcoming weeks will be busy for Tour pros. After the Open Championship, the golfers will tee it up at the 2024 Olympics. McIlroy will be teeing it up with teammate Shane Lowry at the Olympics, as they both represent team Ireland.