Rory McIlroy claims he can shut out all home distractions in his bid for Open Championship glory in Portrush.
McIlroy is confident that he will deal with the pressure of being on home soil for the last major tilt of 2019.
It's a dream come true for the 30-year-old to attempt to win the Claret Jug for the second time on it's long-awaited return to Northern Ireland. He is missing the Irish Open in Lahinch a fortnight earlier to maximise his chances.
But he says he can draw from the experience of playing at home in Irish Opens to get it done after struggling for several years in that tournament before claiming victory in 2016.
McIlroy explained: "It's definitely a situation that's happened to me in the Irish Open before.
"You have to realise that, as much as you want to win for other people and for a lot of other different things, the number one thing is you want to win for yourself.
"It took me a few years playing Irish Opens and stuff to realise that.
"Golf is a selfish sport, and you want to win for yourself. Everything else is just a by-product of that.
"If you can really harness that support you're getting and use it to your advantage and not feel like it's a burden, then it can only help.
"For me, whatever happens at Portrush, at this point I want to win for me. It's not about trying to do something in front of friends and family.
"I've been fortunate enough to win an Open Championship before, and I'd dearly love to win another one.
"It obviously will make it more special if I could win at Portrush, but I just have to treat it like every other Open Championship that I've played the last few years.
"And my record in the last few years has been better than pretty much any other tournament I've played."
Since 2014, when he won The Open in Hoylake, McIlroy has finished fifth, fourth and second - he missed the 2015 championship through injury.
The Holywood native insists he will treat this one as he has the others in terms of preparation - and, famously, he has the course record at Portrush, a 61 when he was just 16.
"If I can just get into the same mindset, I'm going to the golf course that I played well on before and that I know better than most of the guys that are playing," he stated.
"I've played a lot in them. I've done well in a lot of them. So there's no reason why I can't do well with this one, either.
"It's going to be a massive week for golf, for the country, and for me personally. I'm confident, and I believe that I can turn up at Open Championships and compete.
"I feel like I've started to become really comfortable at that tournament, so that obviously gives me optimism.
"If I just look at my stats throughout the year, I'm bettering the field every time I play, and I think my strokes gained total on the PGA Tour is half a shot better than the guy in second place.
"There's no reason to believe otherwise why I wouldn't go there and have a chance to win.
"There's nothing that I'd like more than to lift that Claret Jug in front of all my friends and family from back home, and all the kids it may inspire".
GOLFPASS, golf’s most-comprehensive digital membership program, officially launches today in the U.K. and Ireland.
The announcement was made by global golf superstar and GOLFPASS Founder Rory McIlroy, and Mike McCarley, president, GOLF, NBC Sports Group.
If you haven't already, be sure to like our Irish Mirror Sport and Irish Mirror GAA pages on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.
