CARNOUSTIE, Scotland -- When Rory McIlroy made a birdie at the 11th hole Sunday, it seemed to him that he was back in contention at The Open.
"For a while, I thought Tiger (Woods) was going to win,'' he said. "My mindset was go and spoil the party here."
It was Francesco Molinari who did the spoiling, shooting a 2-under 69 to win at Carnoustie, while McIroy ended up tied for second and Woods faltered and tied for sixth.
McIlroy, who grew up watching Woods, said the 14-time major champion is not feared like he was during his prime.
"Not the Tiger that Phil (Mickelson) and Ernie (Els) and those guys had to deal with,'' McIlroy said. "It's a different version. But he's right there. He's getting himself in the mix. He looked good in D.C. a couple weeks back (at the Quicken Loans). He's looked good here.
"He's played a full schedule. He's healthy. I wouldn't say we're worried about him, but he's one of those guy that's always in with a shot.''
McIlroy, who has gone four years since the last of his four major titles, said he was doing his best to try and beat Woods and the others, although he couldn't appreciate what was happening as he took the lead into the back nine before a double-bogey at the 11th hole.
"With the Tiger we have to face, he does things that maybe he didn't do 10, 15 years ago,'' he said. "But it's still great to have him back. It's still great for golf. It will be interesting to see going forward, but this was his first taste of a major championship ... drama, I guess, for quite a while. Even though he's won 14, you have to learn how to get back.
"I'm relearning. I won quite a few recently, but you still have to relearn to deal with it. Today was a good day for both of us, I guess.''