“Things have happened very quickly,” he said. “And it’s good and bad because a lot comes with it. A lot more attention versus just being able to kind of go about your own thing. And I never realized how underrated that was. I wanted to be in this position, but then, you know, here and there it becomes harder when it doesn’t go your way. And you’re harder on yourself because you expect so much.”

Those words could have been uttered by McIlroy, who surrendered his social media accounts to his wife, Erica, after he missed the cut at the United States Open so he could avoid being drawn into — and dragged down by — a constant barrage of criticism. Woods gives the impression that he does not care what the public says or thinks about him. For all their swagger, Spieth and McIlroy cannot pull off Woods’s nonchalance. They don’t even try. After a closing 67 on Sunday propelled him into a tie for fourth with Rafael Cabrera-Bello, McIlroy defended his 10-major victory drought.

“You look at Jack Nicklaus, he went through a stretch where he didn’t win a major in three years,” McIlroy said. “I’m not comparing myself to Jack. It’s hard to win them. It’s very hard. It’s the reason, especially in this generation, excluding Tiger, no one’s got above five.”

McIlroy also spoke about Spieth, who at the time was out on the course digging a crater-size hole on the first 13 holes that he clawed out of on the final five. “He’s a fighter,” McIlroy said. “He’s shown that the whole way through his short career.”

Spieth showed determination, guts and skill in overtaking Matt Kuchar after tumbling below him on the leaderboard after a messy, majestic bogey on the 13th. Those were the same qualities that McIlroy exhibited in winning his first major, the 2011 United States Open, two months after he coughed up the Masters lead with a final-round 80.

On Friday at Royal Birkdale, Spieth had a late tee time, allowing him to watch some of McIlroy’s round of 68. His impression? “It’s very difficult to hit the ball like Rory McIlroy,” he said.