2026 Irish Open Preview: Rory McIlroy Headlines Stellar Field at Doonbeg

With the dust settling on Great Britain and Ireland's dramatic Walker Cup win at Lahinch, the attention of the golf world shifts 16 miles further down the west coast of Ireland as a quality field descends on Doonbeg for the 2026 Irish Open.

Twelve months ago, The K Club staged an Irish Open for the ages as home favourite Rory McIlroy captured his second title in dramatic fashion.

The six-time major winner again headlines a stellar field as Trump International Golf Links & Hotel in County Clare hosts the tournament for the first time.

The Irish Open precedes the tour's flagship event, the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, which will be played next week.

With several star names in action and no shortage of storylines to follow throughout the week, here is everything you need to know about the Irish Open.

A lot. Five months after completing the career Grand Slam with a memorable win at the Masters, McIlroy sealed an emotional win in front of an ecstatic Irish crowd by beating Joakim Lagergren in a play-off.

Trailing Lagergren by two shots on the 72nd hole, McIlroy sunk a 25-foot eagle putt to take the Swede to a play-off and eventually prevailed on the third extra hole.

It was a gripping final round as McIlroy tussled for the trophy with Lagergren, overnight leader Adrien Saddier, Angel Hidalgo and Rafael Cabrera-Bello, who catapulted into contention with an ace at the third.

The win - which came nine years after his first Irish Open title - provided a well-timed boost for McIlroy just three weeks before he helped Europe retain the Ryder Cup with victory over the United States at Bethpage Black in New York.

While McIlroy will attract much of the attention in Doonbeg, he must fend off a high-quality field if he is to join European legends Seve Ballesteros, Nick Faldo, Bernhard Langer and Colin Montgomerie on three Irish Open wins.

As always, there is a strong Irish contingent. Shane Lowry, who memorably won his national title as an amateur in 2009, is chasing his first individual win in four years. The 2019 Open champion finished tied 15th last year.

Tom McKibbin arrives in decent form. The 23-year-old was in contention for last month's British Masters before a triple bogey early in the final round meant he had to settle for tied sixth.

Three-time major champion Padraig Harrington and two-time PGA Tour winner Seamus Power add further Irish interest.

Beyond the home hopes, there are a host of notable names. Two-time major winner Jon Rahm joins McIlroy in chasing a third Irish Open win after successes at Portstewart in 2017 and Lahinch two years later.

The Spaniard tees it up in Ireland amid ongoing uncertainty around LIV Golf's future. The breakaway tour, which launched in 2022, ended its season early following the withdrawal of the Public Investment Fund's financial backing.

McKibbin, England's Tyrrell Hatton and Chile's Joaquin Niemann are among the other LIV players in Ireland this week.

In addition, there is a strong European Ryder Cup flavour in the form of captain Luke Donald, Robert MacIntyre, Sepp Straka and twins Nicolai and Rasmus Hojgaard, who pipped McIlroy to the 2024 Irish Open at Royal County Down.

Five-time major winner Brooks Koepka also returns after missing the cut on his Irish Open debut last year.

Formerly known simply as Doonbeg, the links course was designed by former world number one Greg Norman and opened in 2002.

It was redesigned by architect Martin Hawtree before the property was acquired by Trump in 2014 and renamed.

Unusually for a tour course, the layout boasts five par-fives and five par-threes. The signature hole is the par-three 14th, which can play as short as 111 yards.