Rory McIlroy appears to have gotten cold feet when it comes to his marriage. Ending it, we mean.
The four-time major championship winner shocked the golf world when he filed for divorce last month from his wife Erica Stoll.
In an equally shocking move, McIlroy filed a notice of voluntary dismissal in Palm Beach, Florida on Tuesday. Court officials subsequently closed out the case.
Now, if he were to seek a divorce, Rory would have to start the entire procedure over from scratch.
The couple’s divorce drama effectively ends just days before McIlroy is slated to compete in the U.S. Open, a tournament he last won in 2011.
He and Stoll have been together since 2015 before getting engaged on a trip to Paris. They have been married for just over seven years.
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Rory McIlroy Divorce Saga
The entire story has been an incredibly wild ride. The golf world was initially shocked over the news that Rory McIlroy had filed for divorce from Stoll.
“Their split comes right out of the blue and no one saw it coming,” one source told The Sun.
Once word got out, the venom in which things were being handled made it seem like the PGA golfer was quite serious about pursuing the separation.
McIlroy signed the divorce papers while competing at the Wells Fargo Championship. He won the tournament by 5 strokes over PGA Championship winner Xander Schauffele, and a day later had a private investigator hand his wife the papers on his behalf.
Ice cold.
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What McIlroy Is Saying
The divorce papers Rory McIlroy couldn’t bring himself to deliver on his own were blunt and threatening.
“A phone call will not protect you,” the summons read. “Your written response, including the case number given above and the names of the parties, must be filed if you want the court to hear your side of the case.”
“If you do not file your response on time, you may lose the case, and your wages, money and property may thereafter be taken without further warning from the court,” it added.
Stoll never responded. Perhaps knowing that things were being worked out behind the scenes. And, in fact, it seems that is exactly the case according to the golfer himself.
“Over the past weeks, Erica and I have realized that our best future was as a family together,” he told The Guardian. “Thankfully, we have resolved our differences and look forward to a new beginning.”
Now, it seems, he can concentrate on divorcing himself from a long drought by capturing his fifth major this weekend at Pinehurst No. 2 in North Carolina. He hasn’t won a major since 2014.
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