Rory McIlroy appeared to pull off an accidental trick shot during his third round at The Open on Saturday afternoon.
McIlroy, 36, was hitting from the rough after an errant tee-off on the 11th hole at Portrush.
As he was hitting the ball from such a tough position, he surprised even himself by chipping up another ball while his own sailed towards the green.
The Northern Irishman could then be seen enjoying the bizarre moment as he held up the ball to the crowd – who had not yet realised what had occurred.
McIlroy began the afternoon at three under, seven shots behind leader Scottie Scheffler following the American’s outstanding seven-under-par 64 on Friday.
After a run of birdies before an unwelcome bogey on the 11th, McIlroy got back on track and moved to seven-under-par after a magnificently sunk shot from 56 foot.
Rory McIlroy appeared to pull off an accidental trick shot during his third round at The Open on Saturday afternoon
As he was hitting the ball from such a tough position, he surprised even himself by chipping up another ball while his own sailed towards the green
Viewers were stunned by the incident on social media as some appeared keen to explain how it happened in greater detail.
One user wrote: ‘That ball came out of the little bank in front of Rory’s ball, commentators keep saying it was underneath, I’m mildly annoyed by this.’
A second added: ‘I still don’t know if this is a good or bad shot’.
Another user wrote: ‘Someone has to track down the original owner of that ball’.
A fourth remarked: ‘100s saying ‘Hey, Rory found my ball”.
Others sarcastically pointed out that McIlroy should be awarded a two-shot penalty after his compatriot Shane Lowry suffered that fate on Friday.
Lowry’s title hopes were dented when he was penalised for his ball moving while he was taking a practice swing in the rough on the par-five 12th hole of the course.
The 2019 Open winner reached the 15th hole of his second round when he was informed by an R&A official that he was under investigatio after the incident.
Some sarcastically pointed out that McIlroy should be awarded a two-shot penalty after his compatriot Shane Lowry suffered that fate on Friday
Video footage appeared to show Lowry’s ball moving and saw his group – which included leader Scheffler and Collin Morikawa – subsequently asked to look at the video evidence post-round.
While Lowry said afterwards that he believed his ball did not move during the swing, he was also quick to say he did not want to branded as a ‘cheat’.
He stated: ‘The last thing I want to do is sit there and argue and not take the penalty and then get slaughtered all over social media tonight for being a cheat.
‘If the ball moved, I would have called it on myself. My head was definitely looking down at the ball and I didn’t see it moving.’
His chances of another Open trophy were shattered on Saturday after a poor round in which he carded a three-over-par 74 to leave him flailing towards the back of the pack.
Hopes of a home victory therefore, rest with McIlroy, who will need to conjure up plenty more magic if he is to catch Scheffler and co.
