Rory McIlroy has broken his silence following the shocking news of his divorce from wife Erica Stoll.
The PGA Tour star, 35, filed for divorce from the American, also 35, on Monday – three days before the start of the PGA Championship – after seven years of marriage.
The Northern Irishman confirmed the break on Tuesday in a short statement through his team.
“Rory McIlroy’s communications team today confirmed that a divorce has been filed,” Sean O’Flaherty, McIlroy’s manager, said in a statement. “They emphasized Rory’s desire to ensure that this difficult time is as respectful and amicable as possible.”
He added that there would be no further comment.
Rory McIlroy broke his silence after the bombshell news of his divorce from Erica Stoll
The PGA Tour star, 35, has filed for divorce from Erica, also 35, after seven years of marriage
The Northern Irishman and Stoll married in 2017 (photo during the 2023 Ryder Cup)
The couple share a three-year-old daughter Poppy, born in 2020 (Erica and Poppy pictured in 2021)
McIlroy was due to speak to the media in Valhalla at 9am ET/2pm BST on Wednesday, but his press conference has now been postponed to 3pm ET/8pm BST.
Court documents filed in Palm Beach County, obtained by DailyMail.com, stated that their marriage was “irretrievably broken.”
The couple, who welcomed daughter Poppy Kennedy in 2020, tied the knot in 2017 after a fairytale meeting at the 2012 Ryder Cup.
McIlroy, whose career earnings total nearly $87 million, first met Erica at the Illinois tournament while she was working for the PGA.
Stoll, who is from upstate New York, helped McIlroy make his starting time in Medinah after alarm problems and ultimately defeated Keegan Bradley in his match.
Despite first meeting at the Ryder Cup that year, it wasn’t until a few years later that the pair entered into a relationship.
A few months after calling off his engagement to tennis star Caroline Wozniacki in 2014, McIlroy and Stoll got together before getting engaged a year later.
The four-time champion and Stoll kept their relationship largely private before marrying in a lavish ceremony in Ireland in 2017.
The couple exchanged vows at Ashford Castle in County Mayo, Ireland, in front of celebrity guests including One Direction star Niall Horan and Coldplay frontman Chris Martin, while music icons Ed Sheeran and Stevie Wonder performed at the event.
Erica was on McIlroy’s bag for the Masters Par-3 event with their daughter Poppy in 2023
McIlroy and Stoll got together after his divorce from Caroline Wozniacki in 2014
The divorce petition states that the couple had signed a prenuptial agreement. However, details of the scheme have not been disclosed.
McIlroy’s attorney was listed as Thomas Sasser, the same attorney who represented Tiger Woods when his wife divorced him in 2010.
The filing also calls for shared custody and the creation of a parenting plan for Poppy.
They are believed to have lived in a 12,800-square-foot ($9.5 million) mansion in the golfing capital of Jupiter, Florida, home to many professional tour golfers.
Erica is regularly spotted supporting her PGA husband at his tournaments, including the 2023 Ryder Cup in Rome, where she wowed on the Spanish Steps in a stunning strapless black dress.
She was also on McIlroy’s bag for the Masters Par-3 competition with their daughter Poppy in 2023. However, the McIlroy family were noticeably absent from the traditional annual event.
Erica grew up in New York and graduated from Rochester Institute of Technology in 2008 with a marketing degree. She went to work for the Professional Golf Association of America.
She was seen at The Players in March when the PGA Tour shared a heartwarming clip of her and Poppy greeting McIlroy on the 18th green. The golfer was seen taking his daughter into his arms for a hug as Erica told him they had been watching his birdie-birdie finish.
McIlroy infamously split from tennis star Wozniacki in 2014, just months before they got married.
The golfer is said to have dumped his then fiancée in a three-minute phone call after telling her he loved her. Their divorce came in May 2014, before their wedding in November.
McIlroy’s split from Wozniacki came days before the BMW PGA Championship in England, which he later won. At the same event last year he tied for 96th.
McIlroy split from tennis star Caroline Wozniacki in 2014, months before they got married
He also claimed two major championship victories that year: The Open at Royal Liverpool in July and the PGA Championship in August at Valhalla – the same course as the same tournament this week.
It’s an eerily similar pattern for the golfer. McIlroy filed for divorce a day after his win in Charlotte, North Carolina, his second consecutive PGA Tour victory and the 26th of his career.
When asked if he planned to go straight to Valhalla on Sunday night, McIlroy said, “I’ll probably go home and reset, then head to Louisville tomorrow night or Tuesday morning.”
Two weeks earlier he lifted another trophy for his cabinet, winning the Zurich Classic alongside friend and Ryder Cup teammate, Irishman Shane Lowry.