McIlroy knows this is not just another British Open

On the final day of practice for the final major of the year, Rory McIlroy ripped a shot out of the light rough and began walking toward the green when he stopped in the middle of the fairway for a quick interview with Sky Sports.

That’s normal for McIlroy at any British Open.

Fans stood six deep, creating a corridor as he walked to the third tee on Wednesday. The grandstand was full and the gallery framed the entire par 3, despite heavy clouds that began to darken with the promise of more rain at Royal Portrush.

No, this is not a normal British Open — certainly not for McIlroy no matter how hard he tries to convince himself as golf’s oldest championship returns to his native Northern Ireland for the first time in 68 years.

“You’ve got the best players in the world here, and I don’t feel like I’m the center of attention,” McIlroy said at a news conference before a media gathering larger than it was for Tiger Woods.

He is not the only Ulsterman who tees off Thursday in pursuit of a claret jug.

Graeme McDowell was raised in Portrush and was a member of Rathmore Golf Club, which is owned by Royal Portrush and shares the same links along the North Atlantic.

Darren Clarke forged his game as a junior at Royal Portrush and now calls it home.

McIlroy is different. He is a four-time major champion and No. 3 in the world, and Royal Portrush is where he came of age in golf. It’s where his father brought him for his 10th birthday, when he met Clarke for the first time. It’s where he first delivered on his potential at 16 when he shot a course-record 61 in the North of Ireland Amateur.

“Portrush has been a very big — at least the golf club — part of my upbringing,” McIlroy said. “It’s sort of surreal that it’s here.”

Just another Open?

It was the first time in 159 years of the British Open that tickets had to be purchased in advance, including two practice rounds. That brings the attendance total for the week to 237,500, second only to the Old Course at St. Andrews.

“I can’t just put the blinkers on and pretend that’s not all going on,” McIlroy said.

“One of my mantras this week is look around and smell the roses. This is a wonderful thing for this country and golf in general. And to be quite a big part of it is an honor and a privilege. And I want to keep reminding myself that this is bigger than me. And I think if you can look at the bigger picture, it sort of takes a little bit of the pressure off.

“I still want to play well and concentrate and do all the right things,” he said. “But at the same time, just having that perspective might make me relax a little bit more.”

A steady rain slowed the final day of practice, along with a stronger wind that gives this course its best defense.