As Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry's families steal Masters limelight, what we know about them
There were plenty of adorable moments as the families enjoyed a day out at Augusta National.
While it was all about Seamus Power at the Masters Par 3 Contest at Augusta National, it was the children of fellow golfers Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry that really stole the show.
The day was a family affair for McIlroy and Lowry who brought along their wives and daughters for the Masters Par 3 Contest. In a rare glimpse into their family life, we saw a couple of cute interactions on the course and plenty of adorable moments.
The little ones appeared to enjoy their time at Augusta National and were seen running around the course, sitting with their mothers while wearing matching boilersuits, and snacking on digestive biscuits. While the Contest is traditionally a family-friendly day, it is not often we see the two golfers with their families as their partners tend to keep a low profile.
Here’s what we know about Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry’s wives, Erica Stoll and Wendy Honner.
Rory McIlroy and his wife Erica Stoll have been married since 2017. Erica, who is originally from New York, has a degree in marketing and used to work for the PGA of America — which is how the pair met. Erica prefers to stay out of the limelight and has kept a pretty low profile since she started dating the golfer.
Rory McIlroy and Erica Stoll first met in 2012 at the Ryder Cup where Erica had been working as part of the transport team for the PGA. In an interview with in 2019, McIlroy re-told the story of their first encounter, which came after a time zone issue meant the golfer overslept and almost missed his tee time. McIlroy had to get a police escort to the course in order to make it in time for the Sunday’s singles’ match. As chance would have it, it was Erica Stoll that drove him that morning.
“Erica that week was always the one that was checking us in and out…it’s still cool to look around and think about that week, and obviously everything that’s happened since then. It’s pretty cool,” he said.
According to , the pair were friends at first and the relationship didn’t turn romantic until 2014. In 2015, Rory McIlroy popped the question during a romantic trip to Paris.
In 2017, the pair tied the knot at Ashford Castle in Co Mayo. Among those in attendance were actor Jamie Dornan, singer Niall Horan and Coldplay’s Chris Martin. At the time, reported that Stevie Wonder was believed to have performed during the couple’s nuptials.
McIlroy has previously spoken about his wife’s desire to remain out of the spotlight, and they managed to keep the details of their 2017 wedding pretty quiet.
In August 2020, Rory McIlroy and Erica Stoll welcomed their daughter, Poppy. McIlroy shared the news on Instagram with an adorable black-and-white image of his baby girl grasping his finger.
“Poppy Kennedy McIlroy, born August 31st, 12:15pm. She is the absolute love of our lives,” he said.
In October 2022 after his win at the CJ Cup in South Carolina, the golfer spoke to Sunday Sport on about fatherhood. “All those firsts, and looking forward to bath time and going into their room in the morning and getting them up out of bed. Just the stuff you take for granted,” he said.
Offaly man Shane Lowry and his wife Wendy Honner married in 2016 and she has remained by his side throughout his golfing success. The pair met on a night out in 2012 and similarly to Rory McIlroy and Erica Stoll, Lowry has previously spoken about his wife’s desire to remain out of the limelight.
Wendy is a nurse and originally from Co Laois. The pair have two daughters, Iris and Ivy. She has almost 20k followers on Instagram where she shares life and family updates.
We don’t have much detail on that “random night out” in 2012 when the pair first met but we do know that two years later, Lowry got down on one knee while in Dubai and proposed to Honner.
The pair didn’t have any mutual friends when they met but Lowry has previously said it definitely wasn’t in Coppers.
The pair married in New York in April 2016. The ceremony was kept low-key with Lowry sharing a snap of the newlyweds kissing in Central Park after they tied the knot.
Speaking on the wedding, Lowry said the guest list had begun to spiral so they decided against having the “big white wedding at home”.
"It was really all very chilled," he told the . "We woke up the next morning and were totally happy at what we were after doing. It was perfect for the two of us."
They had a ceremony at City Hall, followed by a dinner with close family.
On their wedding anniversary last year, Lowry shared a picture of him with his wife and said: “Six years of marriage filled with up and downs, laughters and tears and a couple of kids along the way. I couldn't imagine doing it with anybody else.”
Just under one year after tying the knot, Wendy gave birth to their first child, Iris. In 2021, the couple had a second daughter, Ivy. At the end of 2021, Lowry shared a picture to social media of him with his then-newborn baby as he reflected on the year.
“I’ve been home for a week now and have had some time to reflect on the year. Obviously I didn’t win on the golf course but We as a family had the biggest win off it,” he said at the time.
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