ST. ANDREWS, Scotland — Rory McIlroy, of course, wants to win the British Open this week. But if he doesn’t win the Claret Jug for the second time, he hopes the champion will not be one of the LIV Golf players.

“Selfishly, for me, I think it would be better for the game’’ if a player who’s not a member of the Saudi-backed LIV Golf tour wins, McIlroy said Tuesday. “But at the end of the day, everyone that’s here has the same opportunity to go out there and try to win a Claret Jug, regardless of what tour they play on or whatever that is. Whoever wins here at the end of the week should be commended for one of the greatest achievements this game has to offer.

“I’m not going to begrudge anyone if they win the Claret Jug and they play on a different tour than I play. That’s still a wonderful achievement, and they’re still playing the same sport. But I selfishly want that person to be me, and I’m going to try my best to make that happen.’’

The tee times were announced Tuesday and Tiger Woods will be grouped with U.S. Open champion Matthew Fitzpatrick and Max Homa, starting at 9:59 a.m. Eastern on Thursday. Other marquee groups include McIlroy with Collin Morikawa and Xander Schauffele; Jordan Spieth with Jon Rahm and Harold Varner III; and Scottie Scheffler, Joaquin Niemann and Tyrrell Hatton.

Paul Lawrie, the 1999 Open champion, will strike the first tee shot on Thursday morning, the second time he’s had that honor.

“It’s always nice to hit the opening shot,’’ he said. “It’s a nice thing to be asked to do. Looking forward to it. I’m always nervous on the first tee. I’m never great on the first tee. No matter what tournament I’m playing in, I’m always a wee bit nervous. But obviously it’ll be a little bit more because it’s The Open and it’s the 150th.

“Luckily, it’s a nice, big, wide fairway down there. I can miss any fairway no matter how wide it is.’’

Justin Thomas said he’s leaning heavily on his veteran caddie, Jim “Bones’’ Mackay, to guide him around St. Andrews.

“I’m relying on Bones a lot, to be perfectly honest,’’ Thomas said. “He’s been here a lot. He knows this golf course. He knows the lines. He understands different places to hit it. He’s seen it in different conditions that I haven’t.

“I’m not putting pressure on him when I tell him this, but I’m just being up front like, ‘Hey, dude, I’m going to rely on you a lot this week. I’m asking you because I either don’t know or I just want your genuine and honest opinion.’ It’s not a you-have-to-be-right kind of situation. If I felt confident and I knew it was right, I wouldn’t be asking [him]. I think he’s going to be a big help for me this week, and I’m just excited for what we can do around here.’’