Golfer predicts how Rory McIlroy will play at the Open Championship

The spotlight couldn't be brighter and the pressure couldn't be greater for Rory McIlroy ahead of the Open Championship, given how he finished at the U.S. Open last month.

But according to pro golfer and fellow countryman Paul McGinley, the Northern Irishman has shown in the past that he can rebound from disappointment to top the leaderboard.

"He has a lot of resilience," McGinley told Sky Sports on Wednesday. "He has bounced back a lot in his career."

McIlroy had a slim lead at Pinehurst No. 2 heading into the final stretch of the U.S. Open and was en route to winning his first major in a decade. He then bogeyed three of the last four holes and finished runner-up to LIV Golfer Bryson DeChambeau.

This is the exact type of adversity that has fueled McIlroy in the past, McGinley said.

"You think back to when he had that meltdown on the back nine at the Masters [in 2011] and then wins a month later at the U.S. Open, his first major," he said. "You think [of] the Open Championship in 2019 when he hit the ball out of bounds and missed the cut in his home Open in Northern Ireland, and then goes on to play the next three months unbelievably well and win the FedEx."

McIlroy has had a rollercoaster of a season in general but remains the world No. 2 golfer, entering Thursday's event at Royal Troon Golf Club with two wins and six top-10 finishes. He kept a low profile with the press since his finish at the U.S. Open but has maintained this week that he isn't paying too much attention to the past.

According to McGinley, that focus could help him make the comeback he wants.

"It's going to be tough for him, but I wouldn't discount it," McGinley concluded. "It's going to be a great storyline."

The 152nd Open Championship tees off on Thursday.