Golf's former World No 1 Rory McIlroy is looking forward to entering the 2017 Players Championship this May as a married man, refreshed and willing to starting a new chapter in his life.
The Northern Irish pro golfer is reportedly tying the knot with fiancee Erica Stoll this Saturday, April 22.
The wedding will be nothing but absolutely lavish, with the ceremony scheduled to take place at the exquisite Ashford Castle in Cong, Co. Mayo, Ireland.
There are even talks of the Chris Martin-led Coldplay performing on the D-Day, with One Direction star Niall Horan being one of the high-profiled guests.
While McIlroy and Niall are close friends, the golfer's preferred choice in music hovers over Coldplay, Ed Sheeran, Bon Iver and others.
"They are trying to keep the big day as private as they can, even with all the A-listers invited," an insider has been quoted as saying by The Sun. "The rumour is that Coldplay are performing as they are one of Rory's favourite bands. Rory has said he'll spare no expense on the big day and he loves the band so we'll see," it added.
There's no better time to cash the splash for McIlroy but now! As on November 2016, Forbes valued Rory McIlroy's net worth to be $42.5 million, with majority of the income coming from his endorsement deals with Nike, Omega, Bose, EA Sports and Upper Deck.
Rory McIlroy and Erica Stoll: The love story
McIlroy recently mentioned: "It's a great time in our lives and it's all about that over the next couple of weeks and I'll come back at the Players [Championship] refreshed and a married man and start a new chapter."
The 27-year-old pro golfer met Erica, 29, while he was still dating Caroline Wozniacki. McIlroy mentioned that Erica, the former manager of Championship Volunteer Operations at the PGA of America, had once helped him wake up in time for the Ryder Cup 2012 first tee, after he missed his alarm.
"The thing I love about it is that we were friends before anything romantic happened," McIlroy was quoted as saying by the Irish Sunday Independent. "We met when she was working for the PGA of America, and renting a condo in Palm Beach, and I found it refreshing being with someone who was living a normal life rather than, 'Oh! My jets is 30 minutes late!'
"I could speak to her about anything, we ended up spending a bit of time together and realised that there was something more there. I love that she knows everything about me, and there was no judgement there. There was no judgement from day one, which is huge, because that's very hard to find for someone in my position," he added.
"I thought at the time that being with someone that was in a similar position to you was the obvious answer. But it isn't, because you can never get away from it. You can never detach yourself and try to come back to the real world. And that's why I feel in such a good place now. I don't feel Erica wants to change me in any way. I can be myself around her; there's no bulls***, no acting, no show," McIlroy said.
McIlroy's ex-girlfriends
Holly Sweeney
They started dating when she was just 14, but McIlroy and Holly, a gymnastics coach now, split after six years of relationship in 2011.
She is currently married to Belfast Giants hockey player Jeff Mason; they have a son, Max.
Caroline Wozniacki
Everything was done. From the engagement to the sending out of wedding invitations, but a sudden twist of fate saw their break-up become very public and their dream pairing came to an end. Their relationship ran from 2011 to 2014.
Wozniacki, 26, is currently rumoured to be dating basketball star David Lee. The tennis star recently went topless during a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit photoshoot.
More on the wedding venue Ashford Castle
- Rating: 5-star
- In 2016, voted as the top resort in Great Britain and Ireland by Travel & Leisure
- In 2016, voted as the second-best resort in Ireland by TripAdvisor.
- In 2011, former James Bond star Pierce Brosnan married Keely Shay Smith at the castle.
- In 2013, former Westlife band member Shane Filan married Gillian Walsh at the castle.
- From Brad Pitt to John Lennon, many A-listers have also stayed at the castle.
