By Martin Dempster - The Scotsman
Masters champion will have crowds flocking to home venue
McIlroy
Mania’ at Royal Portrush this summer will see 278,000 fans - the second
largest in the history of the event and officially set to be the
largest sporting event in Northern Ireland - attend The 153rd Open.
The
41,000 increase from the tournament’s return to the County Antrim venue
in 2019 was announced by Mark Darbon, The R&A’s new chief
executive, at a media day for this year’s Claret Jug event, which will
be staged on July 17-20.
McIlroy, who shot a course-record 61 on the Dunluce Links as a
16-year-old amateur, suffered a disappointing missed cut on home soil
six years ago after hitting his opening tee shot out of bounds.
