Rory McIlroy makes late charge with wild round at The Open - ESPN

PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland — Rory McIlroy and the thousands of Northern Irish fans at Royal Portrush did their best to will him back into contention Saturday as McIlroy birdied three of the first four holes. He posted a round of 66 to head into Sunday in a tie for fourth place and six shots back of Scottie Scheffler.

«It was incredible. It was so much fun,» he said. «Just an absolute pleasure to play in front of my home crowd, my fans, and yeah, I've really obviously tried my best. I feel like I've at least given myself half a chance tomorrow.»

Through it all, McIlroy had one of the most unique rounds in recent memory. He began the day seven shots behind Scheffler but made up ground quickly. He made a 36-footer for birdie on the first hole, tapped in for a short birdie on the par-5 2nd hole and drained a 7-footer for another birdie on the fourth.

«It was a dream start,» McIlroy said.

The excitement surrounding McIlroy was palpable throughout the grounds as the galleries chanted his name and hung on his every shot. After the hot start, however, McIlroy stalled, making five straight pars to end his front nine.

«To not birdie [5 and 7] is a little disappointing,» said McIlroy.

On the back nine, his round took on a different tune. He bogeyed 11 after an approach shot that he called one of the «strangest» moments he's ever had. As McIlroy went to hit his ball out of the rough, another ball popped up from below the surface. A dumbfounded McIlroy picked it up and laughed. He couldn't believe it.

«My ball came out so strange, like I thought I was going to get a flier,» he said. «And I looked up at my ball, and I could see it spinning up against the wind. I had obviously no idea there was a ball anywhere close to my ball.»

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