Five-time major champion Rory McIlroy is close to his parents Gerry and Rosie – but neither of them attended his historic victory at the Masters earlier this month
Rory McIlroy with his parents Rosie and Gerry(Image: Getty Images)
Rory McIlroy’s parents were unable to attend his victory at the Masters because they were moving house.
McIlroy made history this month by becoming just the sixth man to complete the career Grand Slam, joining Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, and Tiger Woods in men’s golf’s most exclusive club. The 35-year-old’s victory at Augusta National was thrilling, as he produced a birdie on the first extra hole to beat Justin Rose.
The win also ended McIlroy’s 11-year major drought and avenged his famous collapse at the Masters in 2011, when he shot 80 in the final round to throw away an overnight lead. In other news, photos of McIlroy’s beachside mansion in Portugal have emerged.
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While McIlroy’s win at the Masters was the crowning moment of his glittering career, his parents Gerry and Rosie were not at Augusta National. That’s because they were moving house back in Northern Ireland, as McIlroy revealed on SiriusXM.
“Which they said was a good thing,” laughed McIlroy, as quoted by GOLF. “They were glad they had something to do to take their mind off what was happening at the Masters.”
McIlroy did manage to celebrate the win with his parents by flying to Northern Ireland with his wife Erica Stoll and four-year-old daughter Poppy last week, thus missing Justin Thomas’ win at the RBC Heritage. The five-time major winner also got the chance to celebrate with caddie Harry Diamond, who’s also his close friend, and Diamond’s wife.
McIlroy is playing the Zurich Classic of New Orleans with Shane Lowry this week(Image: Getty Images)
“To celebrate with the people that have been a part of this whole thing for my entire career, my entire life, was absolutely amazing,” McIlroy added.
The five-time Ryder Cup champion was asked what it was like to finally celebrate with Gerry and Rosie, who sacrificed a lot to help their son become one of the greatest golfers of all time. Gerry often worked 100-hour weeks, while Rosie worked in factory.
“Very emotional,” McIlroy replied. “It was amazing to relive the week – and not just relive the week but the entire journey we’ve been on to get to this point… Being an only child, I obviously have an extremely close bond with my parents, and to be able to share this with them was incredibly special.”
Rory McIlroy battling a cold on PGA Tour return
McIlroy is back in action this week at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, playing alongside Shane Lowry in the team competition. The pair won the PGA Tour event last year and are defending their title in Louisiana. “As you can hear, I’ve picked up a bit of a cold on the way, so (I am) feeling a little bit under the weather,” McIlroy said.
“But, obviously, it’s been an amazing few days, and I’m excited and I’m happy to be here with my man, and we’re looking forward to a great week and trying to defend.
“Look, today is a pretty important day for me. I need to start hitting some balls again and getting back into it. Once I got back from Ireland on Sunday, then when I woke up Monday morning, I could barely get out of bed; I was feeling that bad.
“I think just to be here and feeling better is an achievement. But I need to put a little bit of practice and a bit of work in today to make sure that I don’t let this man down this week.”
McIlroy and Lowry made a decent start to the Zurich Classic, shooting eight-under par on Thursday to sit five shots off the lead.
