WATCH: Rory McIlroy makes a chip-in eagle at Genesis Scottish Open round 1

Rory McIlroy kick-started the 2024 Genesis Scottish Open with an incredible round. The Northern Irish golfer returned to the official competition after a break for a few weeks. He had not played in any event since the 2024 US Open, where he had a rough outing and settled for second place after missing a crucial putt on the final hole.

McIlroy teed off at the Genesis Scottish Open as the defending champion. He started his game on the tenth hole with a birdie, followed by a bogey on the next. He was impressive on the front nine and also managed to dominate on the back nine as he carded a fabulous eagle on the third hole. On the par-5 600-yard hole, McIlroy shot an eagle in three shots.

Check out Rory McIlroy's amazing eagle at the 2024 Genesis Scottish Open below:

McIlroy shot three birdies on the front nine, along with two bogeys. He started strong on the back nine, carding a birdie on the first hole, his tenth of the round, followed by an eagle on the third and another birdie on the fourth.

At the time of writing, Rory McIlroy is at a score of 5-under, tied with Daniel Brown, Davis Thompson, Ugo Coussaud and Min Woo Lee for fourth place. Meanwhile, Yannik Paul, Maximilian Kiefer and Haotong Li are tied for the lead with a score of 6-under.

Rory McIlroy is the experts' favorite to win this week. He has been impressive this season, winning two PGA Tour events. After the Genesis Scottish Open, the world No. 2 will head to the upcoming British Open.

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A quick recap of Rory McIlroy's performance at the 2023 Genesis Scottish Open

Rory McIlroy was impressive with his game at the Genesis Scottish Open in 2023. He shot a first round of 64 at the event with six birdies, two bogeys and an eagle. Interestingly, during the first round of last year's Genesis Scottish Open, he carded an eagle on the par-5 third hole of The Renaissance Club, the same venue hosting the 2024 edition of the event. He has thus repeated history this time around.

McIlroy shot five birdies along with a bogey to score 66 in the second round last year. He continued his good performance in the third round, starting with a birdie on the first hole and adding two more on the third and seventh holes. He shot two more birdies on the back nine and two bogeys to score 67.

In the final round, Rory McIlroy started with a bogey on the second hole, followed by a birdie on the next. He carded four bogeys and two birdies on the front nine and added four birdies on the back nine to score 68. McIlroy was impressive in the final round of the tournament in 2023, winning the event by one stroke over Robert MacIntyre.