Max Homa Describes The 'Craziness' Of 'Chaotic' Rory McIlroy Pairing At Royal Liverpool

Both Max Homa and Rory McIlroy are two of the biggest stars in the game of golf and, during the third round of The Open, the duo were paired together in a blockbuster showing.

However, although on paper it looked good, both seemed to struggle at Royal Liverpool, as McIlroy's putter went stone cold on the greens, with a two-under round putting him nine shots back of leader, Brian Harman.

Homa also seemed to struggle and, had it not been for two birdies at the final four holes, he would have been one of only two players inside the top 20 to shoot over-par for the day. Speaking after his round, Homa claimed he was "proud" of how he played, despite the round with McIlroy being "chaotic".

"First time I played with Rory ever was similar to that, but it was in America. It was chaotic," Homa said. "People moving once he hits. I was really proud how I played. I felt like I stayed within myself. Swung it awesome all day. The ball didn't want to go in but I didn't force it, so it was good. With all the craziness going on, I thought I played a solid round of golf. 

"I kind of like the yelling because it makes me laugh. I had a guy yell at me, hurry up, no one is watching you anyways today, which I quite like, if I'm being honest. It's just the moving, but I knew it was going to happen. Fortunately playing with Tiger last year, the funniest part is at St Andrews it's kind of gravel, so right when you'd hit a ball you'd just hear all the footsteps leave."

He added: "Today was a little bit different. You could see them. But at some point after the second -- I think it was the second hole, I had a putt and I just kind of told myself, that's what you're going to deal with all day. If everybody is moving, no one is moving type of thought. It's just a lot. The yelling is fine. It's awesome.

"The only hard part is, not that this matters at all, but if I hit a good shot and he hits an okay shot, he gets a roar and I get a couple of claps and then you get up there and I guess just that 180-yard walk leaves you uneasy because you think you have 40 feet and then you get up there and you have 10. That was the only bummer of the day."

Going into the final day, it's Brian Harman who leads from Cameron Young, with Harman firing a two-under round of 69, despite a shaky start. Earlier, Jon Rahm carded a course record 63 which no doubt put Harman under pressure, but he responded well.

Making birdie at the fifth and ninth, he found further birdies at the 12th and 13th to shoot a 69, with Harman looking to secure his first Major scalp and first title since 2017.