Rory McIlroy believes he is "trending in the right direction" ahead of The Open Championship at Royal Birkdale this week.

The 37-year-old is looking to win the major for the first time since 2014, which is also the only time he has won the event.

After winning the Masters earlier this year, McIlroy put in a positive performance at the Scottish Open ahead of the final major of the year.

The world number two finished tied seventh at The Renaissance Club after carding a final-round 64, equalling his lowest score of the year.

McIlroy will be one of the later starters in the opening round at The Open, playing alongside Xander Schauffele and Matt Fitzpatrick, and he feels his game is in a good spot.

"I've done a good bit of work the past couple days, getting the TrackMan out, seeing what my numbers are, and just trying to match up the feels of my swing with what I'm seeing," said McIlroy.

"Also, like I played 30 holes on Sunday. I felt a little bit tired [on Monday], so I didn't make it on the course, but that allowed me a bit more time to hit some balls and dig into the swing a little bit.

"Felt good on the range. Felt good out on the course. Definitely trending in the right direction."

It's @TheOpen week at Royal Birkdale! pic.twitter.com/0Cfms9MqqY

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While plenty of eyes will be on McIlroy at Royal Birkdale, the pressure will also be on Tommy Fleetwood, who is playing at his home course.

Fleetwood, who also featured in The Open at this venue in 2017, is yet to win a major in his career, but McIlroy expects a composed performance from his Ryder Cup team-mate.

"I felt like I handled playing at home better the second time than the first," added McIlroy.

"It's a great environment, but tough in a way that you just feel the extra expectation on your shoulders, and you feel like you're trying to play well for everyone else and not for yourself.

"Tommy [Fleetwood] coming back here, for example, he grew up five minutes away, but Tommy's more level-headed than I am and maybe won't fall into that trap like I did in 2019. It always seems like it takes me one go-around to get it right."