Standing by the sidelines in an immaculate white outfit, with her best Mona Lisa smile on display, it was hard to believe that it’s only been 11 months since Erica Stoll was facing divorce papers from her husband Rory McIlroy.
A month later he made a shocking U-turn and announced they had reconciled, and this week, the New York native seemed to put all the drama behind her as she supported her victorious Northern Irish partner at the Masters.
Before posing up a storm with their daughter for official photographs, the couple shared a sweet moment, with an emotional Rory walking towards his wife after his victory with his arms open wide.
However, according to a body language expert, the resounding impact of that humiliating divorce announcement is understandably still weighing heavily on Erica, according to a body language expert.
Reaching out to Erica, Rory shared an emotional hug with the mother-of-one – but Erica appeared ‘more polite, subdued and tempered’, Judi James told FEMAIL.
The body language expert said: ‘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.
‘Rory looks overwhelmed and clingy, while Erica’s response appears a little more polite, subdued and tempered.’
There was widespread surprise when Rory filed to divorce Erica last May – just days before the beginning of the PGA Championship, the second major championship of the golfing calendar.
Rory McIlroy poses with daughter Poppy and wife Erica Stoll holding the Masters trophy during the Green Jacket Ceremony after winning the 2025 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club
But the player performed an astonishing U-turn just a month later, calling off the split and announcing that the couple had ‘resolved our differences and look forward to a new beginning’
Friends suggested the real reasons driving the reconciliation were Rory’s fears over paying out a huge chunk of his £200million fortune to lawyers and his inability to ‘be on his own for more than five minutes’.
Following a turbulent year off the course, McIlroy, 35, finally slayed his demons at Augusta National on Sunday to complete the career Grand Slam after 11 years of trying, pipping Justin Rose to the Green Jacket in a dramatic playoff.
After his winning birdie putt dropped to seal the victory over his Ryder Cup teammate, Rory rushed to his wife of eight years, Erica, 37, and their four-year-old daughter Poppy.
Judi told FEMAIL: ‘Rory rushes over to share his emotional state with his wife and his display here mimics one of a needy child looking for a more nurturing response, which is exactly what he gets from Erica.
‘Rory throws both arms out towards her like a toddler looking for a hug, then he clings round Erica’s neck, showing his vulnerable side.
‘While Rory clings Erica pats his back and then strokes it in a tender-looking ritual. As he pulls back she also strokes his face to display gentle affection.
‘Their ritual suggests a message of “we did it” as though acknowledging they both overcame challenges to reach this peak of success.’
Rory kisses wife Erica during the Par Three Contest prior to the 2025 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club on Wednesday
Erica Stoll looks on during the Par Three Contest prior to the 2025 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club, pictured left. Pictured right, Erica after Rory’s Masters win
The couple pose with their four-year-old daughter Poppy, who wowed spectators by sinking a 25ft putt on the final hole of the Augusta National course during the family-friendly event
Rory and his wife Erica share a joke during the traditional par-three Masters curtain raiser at Augusta National on Wednesday
Rory embraced his wife of almost eight years following a turbulent year off the course as he celebrated his win on Sunday
The freshly-crowned five-time major winner later paid tribute to his family during his Green Jacket ceremony.
‘Last but not least, over to my left, my family, my team,’ he said, trailing off as the tears threatened to spill again.
‘They’ve been on this journey with me the whole way through. They know the burden that I’ve carried to come here every year and try and try and try again,’ he continued after recomposing himself.
‘The one thing I would say to my daughter Poppy, never give up on your dreams. Never ever give up on your dreams. Keep coming back. Keep working hard.’
Rory sent shockwaves through the sporting world when he filed for divorce from his wife last May.
A petition was served on her at their £10million mansion in Jupiter, Florida, on May 13, asking for shared parental custody of their little girl and for a judge to enforce a pre-nuptial agreement the couple signed prior to their marriage in 2017.
He left golfing fans further shocked when he performed a U-turn just a month later, calling off his divorce from Erica.
Rory’s attorney Thomas Sasser filed a Notice of Voluntary Dismissal on his behalf on June 11 in Palm Beach County Courthouse after he and Erica reportedly held secret meetings at their Florida home for a month in a bid to salvage their marriage.
The couple, who called off their divorce last year, share a laugh during Wednesday’s round
Erica smiles as Rory cradles his daughter at Augusta. The couple looked to be on the brink of divorce last May when McIlroy filed a divorce petition in Florida, but they quickly reconciled
Rory – who married Erica in 2017 – enjoys a laugh during the annual competition at Augusta
The meetings were initially focused on how they would co-parent their daughter Poppy, but the conversations eventually led to them reuniting, according to Irish outlet RSVP Live.
Rory addressed the speculation surrounding his relationship status in a statement to The Guardian – two days before the opening round of the US Open.
‘There have been rumors about my personal life recently, which is unfortunate. Responding to each rumor is a fool’s game,’ McIlroy said.
‘Over the past weeks, Erica and I have realized that our best future was as a family together. Thankfully, we have resolved our differences and look forward to a new beginning.’
One source close to the sportsman told The Daily Mail’s Alison Boshoff in June 2024 that the real reason driving the reconciliation was that McIlroy ‘can’t be on his own for more than five minutes’, adding that, quite simply, he ‘needs the stability’.
Another said he believes the multimillionaire golfer was told by his team that he had been too hasty in his divorce filing and should give his marriage ‘another six months’.
A friend also told Alison: ‘[Rory] definitely can’t be on his own for more than about five minutes. Rory is a nice guy. He’s a good friend and a great golfer, but he’s not a great partner.
‘I’m not party to the details of his marriage, but I do know that it’s very unbalanced, with him having all the power and her running in circles after him like a 1950s wife.’
McIlroy and his wife are seen together during a golf demonstration event on the Aletsch glacier on Jungfraujoch saddle in the Swiss alps in 2018, a year after their marriage in County Mayo
Rory and wife Erica attend the Gala Dinner prior to the 2023 Ryder Cup at Marco Simone Golf Club on September 27, 2023 in Rome, Italy
Rory and his wife during the Ryder Cup 2018 at Le Golf National in Paris, France
McIlroy and his wife are seen at the All England Club on day nine of the Wimbledon fortnight in 2018
The friend said Erica ‘does provide the stability that he desperately wants and needs. He won’t cope without anyone at all, but perhaps he thought at the time [of filing for divorce] that she wasn’t the right person.’
The source added: ‘Could I be really cynical and say perhaps this is a way of him avoiding a massive payment to her?
‘There are lots of rumours swirling that he’s done this because he realised how much money he would lose. He’s definitely a man who likes his money.
‘His wealth is a sign to him of how good he is as a golfer, and he won’t be keen to start splitting that. I think it could be a mixture of the realisation that he won’t see as much of his daughter and will lose half of his money that has made him rethink.
‘Also, he’s really not very good on his own. That could’ve been in the thinking as well.’
Meanwhile, another friend said: ‘Perhaps the cold realisation of exactly how much the divorce could cost him hit hard.
‘McIlroy has amassed a fortune of more than £200m and his projected earnings in his career are predicted to be more than double that figure. Surely he didn’t want to see all that money he’s accrued diminish.
‘It would have felt like a huge waste if millions ended up in the pockets of lawyers.’
Erica walks on the course during day one of the Genesis Scottish Open at The Renaissance Club on July 11, 2024 in North Berwick, Scotland
Rory kisses his wife Erica while holding his daughter Poppy after winning the Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass in March 2025
The friend added: ‘There is also their three-year-old daughter Poppy to consider. Rory is a doting dad and he has strong family values.’
The New York Post reported that the couple had signed a prenup agreement prior to their star-studded April 2017 wedding at Ashford Castle in County Mayo.
Prenuptial agreements are not legally binding in Ireland – or in England and Wales – but they are in the US where it is believed the legal agreement side of the marriage was taken care of before the ceremony. However, conditions vary from state to state.
An insider said: ‘Under Florida law, there are a number of legal challenges that can be made to a prenup, it’s not a ‘done deal’.
‘For example, a key issue would be is the prenup unfair to Erica – is it ‘unconscionable’ under Florida’s Uniform Premarital Agreement Act and it may not be enforceable on those grounds.
‘Basically, you could be looking at the potential for a protracted, extremely messy and expensive legal battle and clearly that is something Rory would want to avoid. It seems like he was headstrong and rushed into this without thinking it through.’
In May 2024, McIlroy was revealed as Northern Ireland’s richest person under 40, with the Sunday Times Rich List reporting his wealth at £225m – up £25m in 2024.
He was also listed at 19 in the Forbes annual list of the world’s highest paid athletes – a total yearly earning of $80.1 million which makes him the second highest paid golfer in the world.
The couple share a moment during the Ryder Cup at Hazeltine National Golf Club in 2016
Rory with his then girlfriend in Dubai in 2015. The couple married in April 2017
The couple at the opening ceremony of the 2016 Ryder Cup at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minnesota. The couple had got engaged the previous year in Paris
Erica met Rory during the 2012 Ryder Cup while working for the PGA as a transport official
The pair got engaged in 2015, married in 2017 and welcomed their daughter in April 2020
A source told U.S. Weekly in May that year that there were other issues, too. Apparently Erica had been feeling ‘lonely’ in the marriage as the couple were effectively leading separate lives.
The source said: ‘She knew what she was getting into with his profession, but once they had Poppy things really changed and she had a new perspective. Erica was usually absent for most of his tournaments and was really focused on Poppy.’
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After his victory at the recent DP World Tour Championship in Dubai, Rory admitted that he had been through ‘a lot this year, professionally and personally’.
‘To have Erica and Poppy here, it means a lot,’ the golf player said in November.
‘It’s the first one they’ve been at in a while and for Poppy to be old enough now to sort of understand what is going on. I had to ask her if I did win, would she come out onto the 18th green with me?
‘Their support means the world to me and to be able to show Poppy what happened and some of the reasons maybe why I’m not around all of the time because I’m working or practising.
‘Hopefully she realises or thinks it’s worthwhile that I’m not there every night for dinner or for bedtime or whatever it is.
‘It’s incredible that they were here with me this week and I’m excited to go and celebrate with them.’