Rory McIlroy can scoop £1.2m pay-out before The Open if he heeds psychologist’s advice

Rory McIlroy will return to action next week as he looks to defend his Scottish Open crown and the Northern Irishman can reflect on advice from a sports psychologist

Rory McIlroy is gearing up to defend his Scottish Open title next week, with a hefty £1.2million prize on the line before he heads to The Open at Royal Troon. He’s been tipped to take home the cash if he listens to some sage advice from a top sports psychologist.

The golfing ace, who has four major titles under his belt, was tantalisingly close to clinching a fifth at last month’s US Open. McIlroy led Bryson DeChambeau by two strokes with just five holes left but faltered at the final hurdle, missing crucial putts on the 16th and 18th that saw the trophy slip through his fingers.

Jon Adler, a sports psychologist and golfperformance coach, weighed in on McIlroy’s US Open woes during The Sports Agents podcast. He said: “Rory would have thought ‘I can’t miss this, you better not miss this’.

“That little voice in your head, that’s not the problem, when you think you shouldn’t be having those thoughts. ‘Now I’m anxious because I’m anxious, I’ve got double the anxiety’.

“It’s about accepting that I’m going to be anxious, accepting the thoughts when they come in but you deciding actually I’m not going to react to my worrying mind, I’m going to do something I’ve practised over and over [again].”

With these insights, McIlroy might just harness his nerves and triumph at the upcoming Scottish Open.

Last year, he clinched the title with a jaw-dropping 202-yard strike into the wind using a 2-iron, landing just 11 feet from the pin. He sunk the putt on his first go, bagging a hefty £1.2m, and he’s set for another lucrative payout if he can repeat his success at The Renaissance Club.