As the 2026 Masters Tournament at Augusta National unfolded this past weekend and Rory McIlroy claimed his second title as Masters Champion, his personal life and marriage with his wife, Erica Stoll, took center stage among gossipers who took an interest in ongoing divorce rumors and cheating speculation. As both the tournament and the drama ran their course, Stoll became the renewed target of misogynistic abuse and the subject of banter as she stood by supporting her husband along with their young daughter, Poppy.
The abuse – termed ‘misogynistic abuse’ by Glamour – bubbled to the surface, and it was highly reminiscent of the verbal and physical assaults on McIlroy’s wife at the not-so-long-ago 2025 Ryder Cup.
Rory McIlroy Had an Alleged Affair, but Erica Stoll Took the Heat
GettyAUGUSTA, GEORGIA – APRIL 12: Rory McIlroy (C) of Northern Ireland poses with the Masters trophy during the Green Jacket Ceremony alongside father Gerry (L), mother Rosie (2nd L), wife Erica (2nd R) and daughter Poppy (R) after winning during the final round of the 2026 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club on April 12, 2026 in Augusta, Georgia. (Photo by Hector Vivas/Getty Images)
Following a brief divorce filing by Rory McIlroy in 2024, which only lasted a month before being dropped, rumors of an affair between the Northern Irish golfer and CBS reporter Amanda Balionis began to pick up steam in the gossip threads of the golf community. But it wasn’t McIlroy who took most of the heat – it was his wife, Erica Stoll.
The speculation surrounding an alleged affair between McIlroy and Balionis fueled sexist narratives that framed Stoll as either a victim to be pitied or an obstacle to be blamed. This kind of binary thinking is a hallmark of misogynistic discourse, reducing women to roles defined entirely by their relationship to a man.
As proof that this was the foundation of the narrative which played out upon the revelations of alleged infidelity by the golfer, Stoll was the target of a bottle thrown at her during the 2025 Ryder Cup just over six months before the 2026 Masters Tournament at Augusta National took place, according to People. In addition to having a beer bottle physically torpedoed at her, Stoll was also the target of incessant verbal attacks and fans who shouted the name of her husband’s alleged mistress at her for the duration of the competition.
Fan Reactions to Misogynistic Abuse Directed at Rory McIlroy’s Wife
GettyDUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – NOVEMBER 16: Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland poses with his Daughter, Poppy and Wife, Erica, holding 7 fingers to the camera, alongside the Race to Dubai trophy on the 18th green on day four of the DP World Tour Championship 2025 at Jumeirah Golf Estates on November 16, 2025 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Ross Kinnaird/Getty Images)
On social media, fans came out in droves to defend Erica Stoll against the misogynistic abuse and attacks directed at her during recent high-profile golf outings. Some of the fan response online includes:
Instagram user @aeddings95: “This is so bizarre…she’s the wife, not the player. The player is not beloved in the sport because of his own antics but she’s just there…being a wife. Why torment her?”
Instagram user @carriesinks: “Isn’t golf supposed to be a “gentlemen’s game”? Those don’t sound like gentlemen to me. If this is happening at the Ryder Cup on a world stage, I think those people who are behaving badly should be removed. Let alone the nasty remarks but throwing a beer at someone. That’s classless. And cause for removal imo.”
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