McIlroy's second victory of the season followed his only missed cut of 2019 in the Memorial Tournament and gave the former world No 1 a timely confidence boost.

Rory McIlroy says he is feeling more confident than at any time since 2016 as he bids to end his wretched run at the US Open.

MARTIN SAMUEL - CHIEF SPORTS WRITER AT PEBBLE BEACH: After years of woe in the US Open first round, Rory McIlroy delivered arguably his strongest opening day since 2014.

MARTIN SAMUEL - CHIEF SPORTS WRITER AT PEBBLE BEACH: Is it possible to win a major golf tournament without actually playing well? Justin Rose appears determined to find out.

Rory McIlroy has admitted defeat in his quest to land the Scottish Open title but believes his game is sharp enough to contend for the Claret Jug at Royal Portrush.

MARTIN SAMUEL AT ROYAL PORTRUSH: Rory McIlroy was far from being stirred by Northern Ireland's first Open since 1951 - it was as if he momentarily forgot how to play or what it all meant.

DEREK LAWRENSON AT PORTRUSH: On Sunday evening at Royal Portrush, they drank a marquee dry. Then they moved on to Dublin town. The Claret Jug has embraced the party animal.

Rory McIlroy picked up five shots in his last five holes to fly up the leaderboard and sit just one shot off the lead heading into the weekend at the Omega European Masters.

Andres Romero opened up a one-shot lead heading into the final round of the Omega European Masters but Tommy Fleetwood and Rory McIlroy were well in contention in Switzerland.

The singer indulged in one of his other passions as he played golf on the Old Course at St Andrews at the preview for the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship on Tuesday.

Speaking ahead of his title defence at last week's CJ Cup in South Korea, world number one Koepka was asked about his rivalry with McIlroy and said: 'I've been out here for what, five years?

The end of the year is a time for reflection, looking back at the great and the good of the sporting world and those moments that have shown the best of 2019. We don't care about that, though, do we?

The billionaire heiress, 35, showed off her toned physique in the snap, highlighting her ample assets in a plunging floral print swimsuit.

Maroon 5 hosted their 15th annual Halloween bash at Rolling Greens in downtown Los Angeles on Thursday night. This year's theme was Area 51, featuring aliens, army trucks, and flying saucers.

Chrissy Teigen was a bit worse for the wear in the aftermath of her Halloween night and vowed to her fans that she was never going out ever again in hysterical video on Friday.

The himaker, 36, showed the two boys she shares with husband Mike Fisher, 39, Isaiah, four, dressed as The Grinch and nine-months-old baby Jacob dressed as a Cheer Bear in a snap on Thursday

Heidi Klum's Halloween costume was inspired by her husband's belief in aliens. The 46-year-old model decided to dress as a gory part-robot and part-alien, which featured a set of intestines and muscles.

The 34-year-old reality star and her producer husband, 42, really got into the spirit of Halloween when they were spotted in their fun outfits on Thursday afternoon in Los Angeles.

Britney Spears waited until the day after Halloween to show off-to 23 million Instagram followers-her Alice in Wonderland costume. She wasn't the only Britney Spears out in Hollywood this year.

The 23-year-old reality star flaunted her impressively long legs in a golden feathered mini dress before enlisting the help of a pair of horses to give her the ultimate photo shoot backdrop.

San Diego police said that a man, dressed in a white robe and red sash as shown, walked up to a police officer who was trying to arrest someone else and then punched the cop in the face.

Cardi B put her curvaceous figure on full display in a behind-the-scenes video shot by her husband Offset. The rapper was glimpsed from behind in an edit-free shot of her Poison Ivy costume.

Luann De Lesseps mingled with her fellow Real Housewives Of New York City at a Halloween party this week.

The Bodak Yellow artist performed to a packed house at KAOS Nightclub. She also opted for Poison Ivy as her Halloween inspiration for another costume she posted to Instagram.

Emily Ratajkowski flaunted her lean curves in a pink crop top and underwear as she and husband Sebastian Bear-McClard dressed up as Carmela and Tony Soprano for Halloween.

Video was filmed on cell phone by an individual who passed by the vehicle that was parked on the corner of East 95th Street and Clarkson Avenue in the Brownsville section of Brooklyn.

About 200 guests attending a Halloween party in Sydney's West on Friday night poured out into the streets - causing riot squad police to be called in.

Move over Halloween, it's Christmas season now. And the stars of Netflix's upcoming Christmas themed romcom, Let It Snow, are ushering in the holiday season as they ready for their premiere.

Jenner certainly had a busy Halloween season, as she stepped out in several epic costumes. But it was her recent viral 'rise and shine' video that inspired several Kylie costumes.

Khloe Kardashian and Malika Haqq have been joined at the hip lately, since the latter announced her pregnancy earlier this month. The duo were out together on Friday to run errands in LA.

Gigi and Bella Hadid were spotted in high spirits and makeup free on Friday evening ahead of their flight from LA back home to NYC.

Padma Lakshmi revealed she's struggling to balance work and mom life at the moment in a touching Instagram post where she said she cried twice on Halloween as it's a sacred day for her.

She's seen noticeable changes in her body thanks to a religious gym habit. And Ariel Winter showed them off in a 'space cowgirl' Halloween costume that consisted of a crop top and flared pants

Tammy Hembrow attended her third Halloween bash of the year on Saturday. 

The festivities were held last Monday for the families of executive-branch employees and took place in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building across from the White House.

Tammy Hebrow has set tongues wagging after liking and commenting on rapper Tyga's Halloween post, after it was reported that he had recorded a sexually-explicit remix about her. 

The Mummy Diaries star, 28, posted four pictures of her house beautifully decorated with a ceiling full of orange balloons and personalised pumpkin name places.

Halloween may be over, but Kim Kardashian West is still sharing her family's costumes.On Sunday, the 39-year-old reality star took to her Instagram to share yet another set of Halloween costumes.

Rita Ora, 28, recovered from her recent illness to celebrate Halloween in her typical sexy style.

The influencer wore a costume comprising traditional clothing for Egyptian monarchy, a black wig, a gold beaded headdress and held a large Ankh in her hand

Molly-Mae Hague was brushing off the drama on Sunday after facing backlash for her Halloween costume.

Kacey Musgraves paid homage to her hometown when she transformed into a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader for her Halloween costume over the weekend.

A student from Milpitas High School in California said former American History educator, David Carter, was imitating the musician Common in his artificial intelligence ad for Microsoft last Thursday.

Omar Taylor, from Pittsburgh, was playing music at the crowded 'Airbnb mansion' party in Orinda, California, last Thursday, one someone opened five, killing him and four others.

Tamia Robinson, 19, has been charged with criminal damage to property and disorderly conduct over a wild fracas inside off-campus student housing in Atlanta that caused a massive flood.

White witches from around the world are taking to Instagram to reveal the truth behind their mystical lifestyle, where they share everything from their outfits to spells on trendy social media accounts.

Two Siberian Huskies, Sky and Kakoa, from Arizona, were in for quite a shock as their owner dressed as a wolf to play a prank on them. Video of the hilarious encounter went viral on social media.

Jimmy Kimmel Live finally aired its annual Halloween candy prank on Monday. The talk show host, 51, revealed how it was the ninth year of the prank.

Christopher Williams, 27, from Liverpool, and 21-year-old girlfriend Rebecca Kevan were walking back to their Paris hotel in the early hours of November 1 when they were attacked by four French men.

Four teenagers now face charges after allegedly carrying out two armed robberies on October 31, including one that was recorded on video and posted on social media.