Rory McIlroy files for divorce from wife of 7 years on eve of PGA Championship

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Rory McIlroy has filed for divorce after seven years of marriage, according to court records in Palm Beach County, Fla., a stunning development ahead of the PGA Championship.

McIlroy and his wife, Erica Stoll, had a storybook meeting at the Ryder Cup in 2012, began dating two years later and married in 2017. They have a daughter, Poppy, born in September 2020.

TMZ first reported on the filing, which was filed Monday. No documents were immediately available regarding the request for dissolution of marriage.

McIlroy’s lawyer was Thomas Sasser, the same lawyer who represented Tiger Woods when his wife divorced him in 2010.

“Rory McIlroy’s communications team confirmed today that a divorce has been filed. They highlighted Rory’s desire to make this difficult time as respectful and friendly as possible,” his manager, Sean O’Flaherty, said in a statement.

He said there would be no further comment.

McIlroy arrived in Valhalla on Tuesday. It’s been 10 years since he won a major tournament, the last at Valhalla in 2014 for the PGA Championship. His pre-tournament press conference was scheduled for Wednesday.

McIlroy and Stoll met under unusual circumstances. She worked for the PGA of America in 2012 at the Ryder Cup at Medinah, a Chicago suburb, where McIlroy almost missed his Sunday singles match because he said he forgot he was in the central time zone.

Stoll arranged a police escort to Medina and McIlroy arrived barely in time. He won his match against Keegan Bradley as Europe rallied to win.

McIlroy was dating tennis star Caroline Wozniacki at the time. They got engaged a little over a year later, but McIlroy abruptly broke off their relationship over the phone.

He and Stoll began dating later that year. They got engaged in 2015.

McIlroy filed for divorce a day after winning the Wells Fargo Championship in Charlotte, North Carolina, his second straight PGA Tour victory and the 26th of his career. Asked if he plans to go straight to Valhalla on Sunday night, McIlroy said, “I’ll probably go home and reset and then head to Louisville tomorrow night or Tuesday morning.”

The divorce filing comes amid the chaos in golf created by the launch of Saudi-funded LIV Golf. McIlroy has been a central figure over the past two years, harshly criticizing LIV, then changing his mind and pushing for some form of reunification.

He resigned from the PGA Tour board last November, then was involved in a plan to join the board, replacing Webb Simpson. The move was met with resistance from other player managers. Instead, McIlroy was named to a committee negotiating with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund to potentially become a minority investor.