As Northern Irish superstar Rory McIlroy attempts to move on from his marriage to Erica Stoll, aspects of the golfer’s current state of mind have become clear as he also reunited with old faces
Rory McIlroy is focusing on ‘getting back to winning’ as he recovers from his impending divorce from long-term partner Erica Stoll while leaning on friends for support.
The bombshell of the four-time majors victor’s break-up with his wife came as he filed divorce papers at Palm Beach County State Court in Florida on May 13. McIlroy has been married to Stoll, 35, for the past seven years, with the pair having first met in 2012.
Now, it appears that the world No. 3 is focusing on his game as he looks to minimize the impact of his personal strife on his professional work. McIlroy has gone a decade without winning a major but recorded two consecutive wins on the American circuit prior to the US PGA Championship this month.
A source told People that the Northern Irishman is eager to recapture the success of his earlier career, saying: “He’s just trying to find himself, focus and get back to winning,” adding, “[He] went through such a winning phase and hasn’t done much in the last five-ish years.”
The insider also weighed in on McIlroy’s recent failed attempts to regain a place on the PGA Tour’s policy board, as well as the ongoing standoff over a deal between the American tour with LIV Golf. They added: “Plus, he put his blood, sweat and tears into defending the PGA against LIV golf the last two years and it was basically for nothing.”
As for estranged partner Stoll, the source also expressed sympathy for her amid the break-up. They said: “It’s a hard life being a golfer’s wife. They’re always away at tournaments and practicing, there has to be a lot of trust. You either have to join them on tour and go with it or just have trust in them, it’s impossible to expect them to be home and able to help with the kids.”
This comes after another insider informed Us Weekly that Stoll had felt ‘lonely’ during her marriage with McIlroy, as they contended: 2A point of contention in Rory’s marriage with Erica was that Erica was lonely in their marriage. Rory was a hard person to be married to.”
“She knew what she was getting into with his profession, but once they had [daughter] Poppy, things really changed and she had a new perspective,” the insider alleged, giving some details about the inner workings of their relationship. “Erica was usually absent for most of his tournaments and was really focused on Poppy.”
Meanwhile, it appears that McIlroy is calling on the help of his old friends from Belfast as he looks to come to terms with the end of his marriage, according to the Mail. Seeking solace with familiar faces, he emotionally reunited with his set of pals – dubbed the ‘Mac Pack’ – to attend the wedding of Mitchell Tweedie and Lynsey Agnew in Siena, Italy.
The golf superstar joined friends Ricky McCormick, Steven Davidson, Dan Diamond and Harry Diamond as he served as one of the ushers at the nuptials. The group jetted out to the continent together, with the friends sporting Northern Ireland-themed attire, including football shirts and a jersey paying homage to George Best.
