The World Number One may be making a bid for his fifth major at the Open Championship, but he would rather be remembered for who he is as a person and how he conducts himself than his victories and accomplishments on the green.

He told reporters: “I have never once thought about how I’m going to be remembered.

"To me, it truly doesn’t matter from a sense of accomplishment. Like when I die, ‘hey, Scottie won four majors and 20 tournaments and he won this much money’. That has zero effect on me.

“History to me isn’t that important. I don’t necessarily want to be remembered for winning the tournaments that I won. I’d much rather be remembered for the way that I did it: doing things the right way, treating people the right way.”

The 30-year-old sportsman admitted he has learned to relax and take the game less seriously as he's got older.

He said: “Some of my best friends in the world I met through playing golf. When I was young, I took myself a bit too seriously. I’ve gotten better as I’ve gotten older of letting the competition be the competition, and when you’re done, take your hat off and shake hands and we’re on to the next week. History for me has never been the most important thing.

"I guess the point for me was figuring out your ‘why’. Why am I doing this? Why do I want to win this tournament so badly? Why do I choose to play this sport for a living? I think that’s when I’m at peace the most.”