With interest in Rory McIlroy’s personal life at an all-time high following his Masters victory, one of the most talked-about female golfers in the world has entered the chat.
Charley Hull, currently the No. 10 ranked golfer in the Rolex Women’s Golf Rankings, knows a thing or two about going viral. After all, Hull, 29, became a sensation last year when she was pictured smoking cigarettes on the course at the U.S. Women’s Open in 2024.
In an exclusive interview with Us Weekly, Hull reacted to the overwhelming amount of attention being placed on McIlroy, 35, after his Masters triumph on Sunday, April 13.
“At the end of the day, what people say about you, whether it’s good or bad, is irrelevant,” Hull said, while promoting her partnership with Passes, an online platform for content creators. “If you’re doing something good, people always have bad things to say about you, and try to bring you down because you’re doing well.”
After a rumor circulated that Rory McIlroy had donated his earnings from winning the Masters Tournament to an Irish charity, the organization cleared things up. Mencap, a charity based in Northern Ireland that supports individuals with learning disabilities, issued a statement on Wednesday, April 16. “We would like to clarify that reports stating [McIlroy] donated […]
Hull continued, “My famous saying is, ‘People’s opinions don’t pay my bills.’ So you’ve just got to brush it off with a pinch of salt, you know what I mean?”
Much of the conversation surrounding McIlroy has to do with his relationship with his wife, Erica Stoll.
Stoll, 37, and the couple’s 4-year-old daughter, Poppy, were both on hand to celebrate with McIlroy at Augusta National Golf Club after his Masters win. However, Stoll did not appear to accompany McIlroy on a trip with their daughter to Ireland on Friday, April 18.
Viewers also noticed that McIlroy did not mention his wife by name during a post-tournament interview with CBS Sports’ Amanda Balionis.
McIlroy and Stoll have been married since 2017, though the couple did briefly split last year after McIlroy filed for divorce in May 2024. McIlroy filed to dismiss the divorce filing just one month later.
Rory McIlroy, Poppy McIlroy, Erica Stoll. Richard Heathcote/Getty Images
Hull said all of the drama surrounding McIroy and Stoll is “a hundred percent” part the reason she’s kept her new relationship “private.”
“I think it’s a good thing to do,” Hull explained. “It can be hard with my job and everything. In a couple weeks time, he is going to come out for a few days, but that’s about it, really.”
While Hull values privacy in many aspects of her life, she’s breaking down some of her walls on Passes, where she will share exclusive golf, fitness, and lifestyle content with her fans.
“It’s pretty cool because obviously fans know me on the golf course, so this gives an insight into my real day-to-day life,” Hull said. “Like what I do when I’m at home or what I do an hour before my tee time. I always get messages saying, ‘What do you do in the gym? What do you eat? What are you working on your golf swing?’”
Hull said she doesn’t reply to fans on social media because “you can get too obsessed with Instagram.”
“I don’t know, it’s just kind of like there’s too many people, do you know what I mean?” she admitted candidly.
Sign up to join Charley’s Passes community and watch her first video by visiting Passes.com.
