Rory McIlroy’s wife, Erica Stoll, has been by the golfer’s side throughout much of his decorated career.
The couple tied the knot on April 22, 2017, and welcomed a child together three years later.
Stoll, who often attends the athlete’s tournaments, and McIlroy’s marriage made headlines when he filed for divorce in May 2024.
However, they called off their breakup and decided to give their marriage another try a month later.
From her hometown to her career and everything in between, keep reading to learn everything you need to know about Stoll.
New York Native
Stoll hails from Irondequoit, New York, which is about a six-hour drive from Manhattan.
The high school tennis player continued her higher education in the state of New York by attending the Rochester Institute of Technology.
She graduated with a marketing degree in 2008.
PGA All Day
After college, Stoll began working for the PGA of America.
“The way PGA employees present themselves is so admirable and professional. That’s the kind of job I want, and it’s doing something I love,” she told the Democrat and Chronicle in 2008.
She started out as an office manager and transitioned into her role as the manager of championship volunteer operations.
Meet Cute
Stoll and McIlroy first crossed paths when she was working as a PGA transport official at the Ryder Cup in 2012.
The savvy blond came to the rescue by sending him a police escort when he almost missed his tee time due to a timezone mixup.
“Erica that week was always the one that was checking us in and out,” McIlroy recalled in an interview on the Golf Channel. “She was there at transportation, so she was always in the car park over there. But yeah, it’s still cool to look around and think about that week, and obviously everything that’s happened since then. It’s pretty cool.”
Friends First
It wasn’t love at first sight for Stoll and McIlroy and they initially started off as just friends.
The golfer wasn’t on the market when they first met as he was in a relationship with Caroline Wozniacki. But after calling off his engagement to the tennis pro in 2013, he was back on the market.
The following year, McIlroy and Stoll started dating and kept their relationship quite private.
“I am very happy in my love life. We haven’t really been putting it out there,” he explained in a 2018 interview with the Times of London, sharing, “She is from America, which is why I like to spend time in Palm Beach … The past six or seven months have been really nice. That part of my life is going great.”
Parisian Proposal
Things continued to progress and McIlroy popped the question while vacationing in Paris with Stoll in 2015. However, their engagement was almost ruined when a terrorist attack in Paris nearly forced them to cancel their getaway.
“We had planned to go to Paris since May, we were always going to go,” he told the Independent. “Then what happened made us unsure what we were going to do. So we decided to go and if we didn’t like it, if we didn’t like the mood of the place, didn’t feel comfortable, we would go somewhere else.”
He ended up getting down on one knee, sharing that they both felt “comfortable” once they got to the City of Love.
“We went out for dinner and that was that. It was a nice trip, a nice way to end the year,” he shared.
Holy Matrimony
The lovebirds said “I do” in front of friends and family at Ashford Castle in County Mayo, Ireland, in 2017.
Celebrities at the lavish event included Stevie Wonder, Jamie Dornan, Niall Horan, Chris Martin and fellow golfer Sergio García.
Ed Sheeran reportedly serenaded the couple and the wedding capped off with a stunning fireworks display, Us Weekly reported.
Becoming a Family
Stoll’s pregnancy was kept a secret until her third trimester when her husband confirmed the news.
Their daughter, Poppy Kennedy McIlroy, was born in Jupiter, Fla., on Aug. 31, 2020.
“She is the absolute love of our lives,” the athlete shared on Instagram at the time. “Mother and baby are doing great. Massive thank you to all the staff at Jupiter Medical Center and Dr Sasha Melendy for their amazing care.”
Poppy has joined her parents at several of McIlroy’s golf tournaments over the years.
Marriage on the Rocks
Stoll’s relationship with McIlroy hit the rocks when he filed for divorce after seven years of marriage in May 2024.
Just one month later, his attorney filed to dismiss the motion in order for him to stay married to Stoll.
McIlroy explained in an interview with the Guardian at the time that he and Stoll realized they wanted to remain together.
“Over the past weeks, Erica and I have realized that our best future was as a family together,” he said. “Thankfully, we have resolved our differences and look forward to a new beginning.”
Masters Mayhem
Stoll and their daughter were right by McIlroy’s side when he won the Masters on April 13, 2025.
However, a body language expert claimed that Stoll appeared “subdued” when his husband went to give her a celebratory embrace.
“Erica uses back pats, which are firstly a gesture of gentle affection but which also usually signal a desire to break from an embrace, while Rory appears much more clingy,” Judi James told the Daily Mail on April 14. “Rory looks overwhelmed and clingy, while Erica’s response appears a little more polite, subdued and tempered.”
Tensions between them came shortly after CBS Sports reporter Amanda Balionis, whom McIlroy allegedly dated after filing to divorce Stoll, conducted a post-championship interview with him.
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