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Golfer Rory McIlroy has filed for divorce from wife Erica Stoll after seven years of marriage.
McIlroy filed the divorce papers in Palm Beach, Florida on Monday, according to TMZ Sports.
In a statement to The Independent, representatives for the 35-year-old golfer confirmed that the divorce had been filed. They “stressed Rory’s desire to ensure this difficult time is as respectful and amicable as possible”, adding that he would not be making further comment.
The couple met in 2012, when Ms Stoll worked as a PGA transport official. Mr McIlroy and Ms Stoll first became romantically involved in 2014 after he called off his engagement to tennis superstar Caroline Wozniacki the day after sending out their wedding invites.
They married in 2017 and have a three-year-old daughter, Poppy Kennedy McIlroy.
The divorce filing was made a day after Mr McIlroy, who competes for Northern Ireland, won the Wells Fargo Championship and just days ahead of the PGA Championship. He was seen practising at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky, on Tuesday morning.
The world number two told Sky Sports News after the four-day tournament that he was feeling good ahead of the PGA Championship.
“Coming into this week, at a golf course I am comfortable with, my golf swing feels more comfortable than it has done,” he said. “Going to a venue next week where I have won, it feels like the stars are aligning a little bit. But I have a lot of golf to play and a lot of great players to try to beat.
“I am going into the next major of the year feeling really good about myself,” he said on Sunday.
The couple’s split comes amid chaos in the golfing world created by the launch of Saudi-funded tour, LIV Golf. McIlroy has been a central figure over the last two years, harshly criticizing LIV and then changing his views and pushing for some form of reunification.
He resigned from the PGA Tour board last November, then was involved in a plan to rejoin the board by replacing US golfer Webb Simpson, a seven-time PGA Tour winner.
That move was met with resistance from other player directors. Instead, McIlroy was appointed to a committee that is negotiating with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia over potentially becoming a minority investor.
