Rory McIlroy backs Muirfield for Open return despite ‘lowest point’ in 2013

Rory McIlroy on his way to a round of 71 for a three under par at the Dubai Desert Classic. Photograph: Ali Haider/EPA

Rory McIlroy has endorsed Muirfield’s case for an Open revival despite reaching a golfing nadir there when the major was last staged at the Scottish links in 2013. McIlroy declared he felt “unconscious” and “brain dead” while en route to a missed cut in East Lothian 13 years ago.

The refusal of the Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers to admit women – a scenario that changed in 2017 – and the low attendance at Muirfield on that last visit played a part in the absence of the Open. Yet the venue is still rightly regarded as one of the finest in the world.