Irish Open host Rory McIlroy is back in familiar surroundings this week as Ballyliffin plays host to the tournament.
Speaking at a pre-tournament press conference on Wednesday, he's looking forward to getting immersed in the Irish Open once again.
"I think one of the big things about the Irish open when we got involved was to try and impact positively the local community," he said.
"It’s fantastic. I haven't played here in 12 years, I’ve sort of forgotten how good it was and how beautiful the area was. It’s a great golf course. It’s a tough track. You’ve got to hit the fairways and greens. It’s firm, it’s gonna be a really good test this week."
The Manchester United fan also turned his thoughts to soccer with the World Cup in Russia entering a pivotal stage.
"It is good to see someone from the Home Nations doing well and it was great to see them getting through the penalty shootout last night," McIlroy said of England who are through to the quarter finals after beating Colombia on penalties.
"I thought Harry Kane was tremendous. I think they’ve got a great draw. They’ve got a good chance. I think it would be great but there’s a long way to go, I still think France are favourites.
He also discussed his approach to tournaments and changing perspectives in his quest to add to his haul of majors.
"I’ve cut back from a few things off the golf course I’m not as involved in some of the stuff. There been a couple of times where I haven't felt as prepared as I should be on the first tee on a Thursday. I’ve done my work. There’s no excuse about not being prepared. I felt I was under-prepared at County Down. I’ve learnt and I feel this year I’m ready," he said.
"If I didn’t win another major in my career, nothing's gonna change in my life. I won’t feel as if I hadn't fulfilled my potential. There’s other things in my life that are more important than golf. My goal this year wasn’t to win majors it was just to give myself a chance and put myself in positions.
"I think getting married and thinking about the future, as you get older, your perspective changes and it’s not just the golf nowadays. I still feel like a have a lot of time left to make my mark on golf but it doesn’t keep me up at night thinking if I never win another major that I can’t live with myself."
Stephen Kierans
