Inside Rory McIlroy’s beautiful Florida mansion worth £8million with cinema and recording studio bought from Ernie Els
RORY MCILROY has come a long way from his modest childhood home in Belfast.
The PGA Tour star, 34, owns a massive 12,800-square-foot Florida mansion bought for £7.6million from legendary PGA star Ernie Els.
McIlroy moved into the golfing capital of the world – Jupiter, in Florida – after selling his old mansion for around £9million.
He bought his new pad in The Bear’s Club, a golf development which was founded by Jack Nicklaus in 1999 and is 85 miles north of Miami.
It came a few short months after he married Erica Stoll in a lavish wedding in Ireland.
And the luxury property was in well-known hands before McIlroy moved in, having been previously owned by Ernie Els.
The incredible neighbourhood has been home to basketball legend Michael Jordan, tennis royalty in Serena and Venus Williams, plus fellow golfers Luke Donald, Michelle Wie and Els.
EL OF A PAD
And somehow McIlroy managed to end up with even more bathrooms.
The massive property stretches over 12,800 square feet and boasts seven bedrooms and TEN bathrooms.
A huge balcony at the back of the property overlooks a tranquil swimming pool.
Inside, McIlroy has everything a young multi-millionaire could wish for, with a recording studio, games room, gigantic pool and a home cinema.
But it’s a long way from where he grew up.
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FAMILY HOME
Parents Gerry and Rosie raised McIlroy in the family’s four-bedroom house in Holywood, Northern Ireland.
It was adapted by Gerry into what would be a young aspiring golfer’s dream.
A trampoline could be found in the garden but it was tucked behind a giant practice putting green.
Step into the garage and McIlroy, the 2014 Open champion, had his very own golf simulator.
Father Gerry had transformed the space into a studio where a young curly-haired McIlroy could study his swing and ball-striking with two TVs wired up to the system.
And, when he wanted to put that into practice, Holywood Golf was just a 20-minute walk from the house.
FIRST-TIME BUYER
When McIlroy moved out the family home, it wasn’t your typical property for a first-time buyer.
McIlroy bought Robinhall House in Moneyreagh, County Down, which is now worth around £3m.
Now there was no need for a golf simulator as McIlroy had his own driving range, putting green and massive practice area complete with seven bunkers on the 14-acre property.
For down time, there was a cinema, outdoor hot tub, lake with 1,200 trout and full-size tennis court where he could play with then girlfriend and former world No1 Caroline Wozniacki.
McIlroy sold the estate in 2013 for around £2.5m as he jetted off to America.
AMERICAN DREAM
McIlroy’s move Stateside saw the four-time major winner treat himself to a stunning Florida mansion.
The pad in Palm Beach Gardens came with six bedrooms, a gym, outdoor swimming pool and, of course, a putting green.
A sprawling lounge area led on to a relaxing patio with sofas that are nestled by the pool.
The mansion was designed so the water met with the side of the house, and ran along to a water feature.
Among the NINE bathrooms is the en suite for the master bedroom which boasts a whirlpool in the centre of the room.
A private gym came with a full weights section, bike, treadmill and huge television screen on a wall-length mirror.
McIlroy could unwind in a games room, complete with a pool table, which had massive sliding doors onto the pool area.
However, he clearly fancied a change of scenery and moved into Els’ old pad instead.