McIlroy: Fans would make Open Championship at Portrush a success

Irish golf fans would ensure an Open Championship return to Royal Portrush was a success, Rory McIlroy has insisted.

Fresh from celebrating the triumph of Ireland’s latest major winner Darren Clarke, who won the Open in Sandwich at the weekend, McIlroy said he could detect a real momentum building in the campaign to see the tournament staged in his homeland, for only the second time in its history.

Governing body the Royal and Ancient (R&A) has pledged to examine the possibility but has voiced concerns whether holding the Open in Portrush, on the region’s scenic north coast, would be commercially viable and if enough spectators would come through the turnstiles.

“The fans always come out here to watch,” said McIlroy. “For us it would be huge if we got it here, we’re still keeping our fingers crossed and hopefully the R&A look long and hard at it and if they do, and it does come here, I think it would be a success.”

McIlroy, who today welcomed home his friend and charity bike rider Drew Wylie after an arduous cycle the length of Ireland, acknowledged there were logistical issues that needed to be addressed at Portrush and stressed the importance of attracting fans from elsewhere in the UK to make the trip over.

“It’s just tough because it’s not just the golf course, and the room, but it’s economically how it will do here – there’s a lot of different areas that they have to look at,” he said.

“But hopefully if they look at it and they can put a bit of infrastructure in place hopefully it could come back here within the next 10 or 15 years.”

Mr Wylie, who is McIlroy’s builder, was one of 30 cyclists who completed the 450 mile journey from Mizen, Co Cork, to Malin Head, Co Donegal, for the charity Mainstay DRP, which works with people with learning difficulties in the golfer’s home county of Down.

The 22-year-old US Open champion was one of the team’s main sponsors.

“I’ve got to know Drew quite well over the last couple of years and it’s very, very important to support local charities and try to give back to your local community,” he said.

“When you’re in the public eye you have to do your bit, I’m an ambassador for Unicef in Ireland and was in Haiti earlier on this year, so it’s something that I’m getting more into.

“It’s a big part of what we (professional golfers) do – try to raise awareness and try to raise money for good causes.”

The young golfing star said he is a bit of a cycling fan, particularly the Tour de France.

“I don’t get out on the bike as much as I’d like but I like cycling, if I was going into to the gym I’d try to get on the spin bike and stuff.

“Drew’s always been pestering me to get out on the road with him but I’ve never really had a chance to do it yet.”

Mr Wylie, 57, who completed the trip in five days, thanked McIlroy for his support.

“It’s important to get people on board and he’s a great ambassador for Northern Ireland in every respect,” he said.

“When I emailed out to everybody I also included Rory on the email that I sent out asking for support and he came back with one of the biggest donations I had. He’s a super bloke.”

He said the charity did vital work in the community.

“The charity has been going for 20 years and the people they have been looking after are now, like the charity, getting a little bit older so their care needs have changed into the bargain so as a consequence then they are having to provide different facilities as these people get into their 50s and 60s,” he explained.

To support Mainstay DRP’s work log onto www.mainstaydrp.org.