Rory McIlroy has clarified that his wife Erica Stoll was present with him during his trip to Belfast to celebrate his Masters triumph, after speculation she didn’t accompany him. The 35-year-old sealed the biggest win of his golfing career by claiming the iconic green jacket following a play-off win over Justin Rose at Augusta earlier this month.
It ended a run of 11 years without a Major and he now joins an elite group of six players who have managed to get their hands on all four of golf’s most sought-after titles, alongside Tiger Woods, Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player and Jack Nicklaus.
McIlroy jetted off to Northern Ireland on Friday, but there were question marks over the absence of wife Stoll after she was not pictured with him as he left his private jet with his daughter at Belfast City airport.
But now McIlroy has set the record straight by insisting Erica was indeed with him for the trip – which started with a stop-off in London before he made the journey over to Belfast along with four-year-old daughter Poppy. He flew over to see his parents, who could not be present to witness his Masters win.
“It’s been an amazing few days after and to be able to reflect on it and everything that happened and the magnitude of everything,” he said. “The big thing for me is how the whole journey is how it resonated with people. It’s not every day you get to fulfil one of your lifelong goals and dreams.
“We first went to London with Erica and Poppy to see our new home that we’re building and we made the trip over to Belfast to see a few other people that are important to us. Just to be with them, to be with Erica and Poppy and my mum and dad.
“To see Michael Bannon my lifelong coach and spend a bit more time with Harry (Diamond) and his wife. Celebrate with the people that have been part of this whole thing for my entire career was absolutely amazing. As you can hear, I picked up a bit of a cold on the way, so I’m feeling a little bit under the weather. Obviously, it’s been an amazing few days.”
McIlroy previously raised eyebrows by failing to mention Erica while naming his ‘close-knit’ support system that had inspired him to victory at Augusta.
In an interview with CBS Sports’ Amanda Balionis, he mentioned numerous people, including caddie Diamond, but didn’t namecheck Erica.
He said: “I have had an incredible support system the whole way throughout my life as an only child, the support that I had from my parents, they saw some potential in me as a golfer. And they gave me every opportunity to try to fulfill that potential.”
“To have Harry on the bag. I have a, as you call it, a village. But it’s a close-knit village and it’s pretty small, but everyone that’s in there means an incredible deal to me. I think as well, to have Poppy there and to see… you know, I want to make her proud, I want her to be able to experience these things.”
McIlroy has been married to Stoll since 2017 before having Poppy in 2020. Last year, they announced they were filing for divorce – before deciding to reconcile and call off the proceedings.
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