Li Hoatong: Who is the Chinese golfer who challenges Scottie Scheffler for the Open?

In order to make his open performance even more remarkable, Li said that he had limited a large part of his practice due to the size of the crowds in Portrush to the reach.

“I will tell you what, in the past few weeks, I felt very, very bad to be honest,” said Li.

“This week I hardly got on the course to play because I felt that there were so many people, although the course was so full.

“I only hit a few balls on the range and was not comfortable. I wasn't even at our meetings on Thursday and Friday morning.

“But it was actually quite nice to this day.”

It is a feeling that he has to get used to. Unlike the PGA Championship 2020, when he led after 36 holes, but fell away, he stayed in contact in Northern Ireland.

And now he will go for the first time in his career on the end of a major in the last pairing.

All eyes will be aimed at him, but it is a challenge that he wants to assume when he shocked that he shocked Scheffler.

“I'm actually really looking forward to it,” he said.

“I will only try to play my best out there and hopefully do something.

“It will be exciting.”

As an outsider against the severe rackets of sport, Li admits that he has nothing to lose.

But as he said on Friday: “I think if I play my best, I can compete with anyone.”