McIlroy sets sights on double

Teenage dynamo Rory McIlroy is targeting a rare double in the AIB Irish Amateur Open at Portmarnock.

The 17-year-old Holywood sensation wants to become the first player since Tom Craddock in 1959 to hold the Irish Amateur Close and Open titles at the same time.

The action in the 72-hole strokeplay event tees off on Friday and McIlroy knows he needs to produce top drawer golf to see off an elite international field.

McIlroy said: “I held the Irish Boys, the Irish Close and the Irish Youths titles at the same time last year so to hold the Close and this one at the same time would be pretty sweet.

“There's a great field here but it’s a very fair golf course and I am playing and driving the ball well, so I think I have a very good chance.”

After finishing third in last week’s Lytham Trophy, McIlroy is the favourite to clinch the title at Portmarnock on Sunday night.

But Welsh Walker Cup veteran Nigel Edwards reckons the championship is wide open with seven players off plus four, 13 off plus three and 35 off plus two.

Edwards, 37, rapped: “There are many good players in the field, not just him. I would have thought there are probably 20 who can win.

“All Ireland is pinning a lot of hopes on him but believe it or not there is a world outside Rory McIlroy.

“There is a lot of talk about him and he has done very well. But there are another 119 players who have a chance too.”

McIlroy holds the lowest handicap in the field at an impressive plus 4.1.

And he feels confident that he can pull off a famous victory on a course that suits his straight-hitting game down to the ground.

He added: “I was disappointed not to win at Lytham but it just gives me more motivation to go out and win this week.

“Portmarnock is not as tight as Lytham. It is more enjoyable and there is a good variation of long and short holes, I’m looking forward to it.”