Unburdened Rory set to go birdie hunting

Rory McIlroy will go into today’s Irish Open first round at the Fota Island Resort unburdened by matters Olympic and determined to finally make a mark on his national Open.

Two top-10 finishes in six Irish Open starts is not much to show for a golfer as gifted as McIlroy who said yesterday he has now learned to embrace all the demands on his time this European Tour event can make on a home participant.

Accepting this event, warts and all, will be a help, as will the relief that came with ending all that speculation over his choice of team for the 2016 Olympics and the incentive of Race To Dubai and world ranking points.