Who Will Get Custody of Rory McIlroy & Erica Stoll’s 4YO Daughter Poppy After Divorce?

7 years. That is how long Rory McIlroy has been married to his wife Erica Stoll. From responding, “I am very happy in my love life” to their marriage being “irretrievably broken,” the two have come a long way. While they were together, the couple also welcomed their baby girl, Poppy Kennedy McIlroy on August 30, 2020.

Come May 2024, the Northern Irishman has now moved for divorce and has reportedly filed the court documents in Florida. Case in point: As the two lovebirds separate from each other, the focus falls on the custody of their daughter, who will turn 4-years-old in three months.

The custody of Poppy, Rory McIlroy’s daughter

Sean O’Flaherty, the golfer’s manager, confirmed the news of the divorce in a statement. While doing so, he also mentioned, “They stressed Rory’s desire to ensure this difficult time is as respectful and amicable as possible,” while subtly referring to the proceedings involving the separation as well as the custody issue.

When it comes to the custody of the children following the parents’ divorce, the law is governed by the states rather than the federal government, with each 50 states having its own, albeit similar, set of rules. It keeps in mind the best interests of the child while not giving any preference to either the father or the mother during the rulings. If McIlroy and Stoll are, thus, unable to reach an agreement outside of court, the judge can decide their parenting plan based on the best interests of Poppy.

From July 1, 2023, there has been a rebuttable presumption about equal timesharing being in the child’s best interest. If either Rory McIlroy or his soon-to-be ex-wife wishes to refute the same, then they have the burden of proving the opposite. This will allow the court to make a ruling based on the factors that are set forth including the preference of their daughter, the willingness of the athlete and Erica Stoll to meet Poppy’s needs, along with their moral fitness and how/if it will impact the child, among others. Aside from these factors, the rulings may also change based on the professional’s and his wife’s capacity and willingness to be involved in their daughter’s school and extra-curricular activities, along with their ability to grow and maintain a close relationship with her, not to mention their capability in being able to act on Poppy’s needs instead of their own wants.

Truly a difficult time lies ahead for both Rory McIlroy and his future ex-wife, Stoll, as well as their daughter Poppy. But, only one of two cases will take place with either of them being decided by the court, when the two fail to agree.

Kinds of custody that McIlroy’s daughter, Poppy, might end up in

When the custody of children is being looked into, the court would usually decide on either “joint custody” (a.k.a shared custody) or “sole custody” with rights of visitation. The first of the two involves two parts with one being referred to as “joint legal custody” with the other being “joint physical custody.” The former “provides for equal rights of each parent to make major decisions regarding the child,” including “child’s education, health care, and religious training.” At the same time, the latter alludes to the “amount of time the child spends with each parent,” with Poppy spending a considerable amount with both her father and mother.

When it comes to sole custody, however, Poppy would be spending most of her time with either McIlroy or Stoll, with the other parent being entitled to spend scheduled time with her. This may include every other weekend, a weeknight, half of the holidays as well as several weeks during summer.

Although most of the custody battles are solved outside of court, there is always a chance for there to be differences in opinions leading to clashes. The fans can only hope such a situation won’t arise in Rory McIlroy’s case with them going their separate ways “amicably” as he earlier wished to do so.