Strange back & forth

Relationship not broken after all! Divorce annulled

Golf star Rory McIlroy has had the divorce from his wife Erica Stoll withdrawn.(Bild: APA/EPA/ALI HAIDER)

Before the PGA Championship in May, golf star Rory McIlroy announced his divorce from his wife Erica Stoll seven years after their dream wedding. Reason: "The relationship is irrevocably broken." Ahead of the US Open starting on Thursday, he has now announced that they are making a fresh start.

In a statement to the British newspaper "The Guardian", McIlroy said: "There have been rumors about my private life recently, which is unfortunate. Responding to every rumor is a fool's game. In the last few weeks Erica and I have realized that our best future is a family together. Thankfully, we've put our differences aside and are looking forward to a fresh start." The couple have a daughter, Poppy, who turns four in September.

Rory McIlroy is not divorcing his wife Erica Stoll after all.(Bild: AFP)

Divorce refusal just as surprising as separation news
The divorce refusal comes as much of a surprise as the separation news a month ago: while McIlroy was preparing for the PGA Championship in Kentucky, Erica Stoll received the divorce papers at his home in Jupiter, stating that the marriage was "irretrievably broken". The golf pro filed for joint custody of their three-year-old daughter Poppy and for court enforcement of a prenuptial agreement the couple signed before their wedding in April 2017.

Stoll had not hired a lawyer
In the summons, Stoll was given 20 days to file a counterclaim, otherwise she risked the court recognizing the divorce by default judgment. However, according to the Daily Mail, she neither filed a response nor hired a lawyer by the deadline of June 2. And now there seems to be a happy ending.