Rory McIlroy might just have an edge on the field at the 2023 PGA Championship as he'll look to end his eight-plus-year Major drought in a city that "feels like almost like a second home" to him.
The Northern Irishman confirmed he is still a "current member of Oak Hill" earlier in 2023, with the 34-year-old now linked to the northern New York State city through his wife, Erica Stoll.
The four-time Major winner said his "connection to Rochester's got a lot stronger" since the 2013 PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club after marrying Rochester native Stoll in 2017.
Erica was born in the northern Rochester suburb of Irondequoit and graduated from the Rochester Institute of Technology with a marketing degree. She found her way into the golf industry with the PGA of America and worked at the 2013 PGA Championship at Oak Hill in Rochester.
The pair famously met at the 2012 Ryder Cup, where she helped arranged a police car to transport McIlroy to Medinah on the final day after he got his time zones mixed up and eventually arrived 10 minutes before his tee time.
“Erica that week was always the one that was checking us in and out. She was there at transportation, so she was always in the car park over there [the clubhouse],” McIlroy said at the 2019 BMW Championship at Medinah, scene of the historic 2012 Ryder Cup. “But yeah, it’s still cool to look around and think about that week, and obviously everything that’s happened since then. It’s pretty cool.”
Rory and Erica got married in Ireland in April 2017 and McIlroy has since been connected to Rochester. He clearly visits the city from time to time as he's a member of Oak Hill Country Club, the venue for the 2023 PGA Championship, where he'll be sure to get plenty of support from the locals.
"I'm looking forward to it," he said of the 2023 PGA Championship at Oak Hill. "I think Andrew Green's done a really good job. I think the renovation has hopefully restored the East Course back to its former glory, I would say. I'm just hoping for a good weather week. I think that's what everyone's hoping for up there in May.
"But excited to go back to Oak Hill. From the last time I was there or we were all there my connection to Rochester's got a lot stronger. So I'm excited to go and play a Major championship in what feels like almost like a second home to me."
McIlroy is a member at many clubs, with his primary venue being the Bear's Club in Jupiter, Florida, which is also where he lives. He is also a member of Ohoopee Match Club in Georgia and is thought to be a member at Queenwood Golf Club in Surrey, England.
The World No.3 may be boosted by the crowds at Oak Hill as he looks to win his fifth Major after a disappointing March and April that saw him miss the cut at both the Players Championship and The Masters.
