Irish Open: Shane Lowry eyes weekend duel with Rory McIlroy at Royal County Down

Those making their way to Newcastle on Saturday will also hope to see Tom McKibbin fire his way into contention after a battling second-round 69 saw him make the cut.

McKibbin, who is one-over par, followed McIlroy around Royal County Down as a wide-eyed 12-year-old fan in 2015. But here, the 21-year-old will be the one stopping for autographs and may even start to think about winning the thing with a good round on Saturday.

“It’s always a big deal for the home guys to play well in their national open,” said McIlroy, who played alongside McKibbin in the opening two rounds.

“This is no different and to have a few of us up there, it only enhances the tournament.”

McIlroy would surely be the most popular winner, though, especially in a year which has to this point been defined by his heartbreaking near-miss at the US Open.

With a gruelling PGA Tour season behind him, he has cut a relaxed-but-focused figure this week as he bids for a first professional win in Northern Ireland.

His mood has been helped by sleeping in his own bed in Holywood and a comfortable grouping with McKibbin, who now has McIlroy’s friend Ricky McCormick on the bag.

But McIlroy also revealed he has enjoyed returning home more in the past couple of years having been based in Florida for over a decade.

“My mindset has been I was excited to get back over to Europe,” he said.

“After that long stretch in America in the summer and the three FedEx Cup play-off events, I was excited to get back to Europe and play some golf over here.

“I’m trying to embrace that as best I can. I’m happy to be here, I feel like I’ve enjoyed coming back to Europe and coming home even more the last couple of years and [I’m] just excited to spend some more time over here.”