European Tour and Ryder Cup CEO Guy Kinnings – a long-time player manager – will be present when McIlroy tees off at Royal Melbourne’s globally renowned composite course in the first week of December. “I remember being there when Tiger came down … and Rory; we’ve been incredibly lucky. I’ve lived through an era when we had the biggest athlete on the planet in Tiger, and he transformed the game completely for everyone. I always go, ‘everyone should go and shake him by the hand’. He changed the game completely. “What Rory has done … and can do, for international golf is massive ... he has that same sort of appeal. People get very excited about Rory also. The great thing about Rory is he’s his own man, and he’s shown that he’s going where he wants to go.” Australian superstars Cameron Smith, Adam Scott, Marc Leishman, Lucas Herbert and Elvis Smylie are all expected to play the Open alongside McIlroy, with announcements expected in the near future.