Rory McIlroy's wife Erica Stoll is nowhere to be seen at The Open as he misses the cut

Erica Stoll -- Rory McIlroy's wife -- was noticeably absent when the golfer missed the cut at The Open on Friday, blaming his recent struggles on his 'messy' life. 

On Day 2 of the 152nd Open at Royal Troon, the Northern Irishman faced an uphill task to make the cut following an opening 78. 

His faint hopes disappeared when he covered the first five holes in five over par. 

Then, following a dropped a shot on the third, McIlroy ran up a triple-bogey eighth on the fourth after failing to advance his ball more than a few yards from heavy rough, missing the green with his fourth and then chipping into a greenside bunker.

But, the 35-year-old didn't quite give up hope at the time, scooping the ball from out of the bunker on the 14th to reduce the arrears to 12 over par. 

Unfortunately, his efforts were a little too late as his round of 75 wasn't anywhere good enough to bring him above the cut. He finished 11 over, putting him way down the leaderboard. 

If there's any consolation for him, Bryson DeChambeau, who pipped McIlroy to win the US Open in June, also missed out.

McIlroy played last week in the Scottish Open, which his wife attended, after a brief three-week break and tied for fourth, as he was was optimistic about his form going into the final major of the year.

But he and everyone else was thrown off their plans at Royal Troon when the wind came from an opposite direction, as it plunged McIlroy's bid to end his decade-long major drought into doubt.

While things haven't been exactly plain sailing for McIlroy on the golf course, his private life seemed to also be in turmoil until last month, when he and his wife ended divorce proceedings.  

The couple share a three-year-old daughter, Poppy, together. Poppy turns four in September. 

News of McIlroy reconciling with his wife broke when he arrived at the last major in May they had filed for divorce. 

And two days before the US Open came the news that divorce proceedings were close din a filing in Palm Beach Country Florida, where McIlroy was competing in the Wells Fargo Championship.

In a statement to The Guardian in the UK, McIlroy said, 'There have been rumors about my personal life recently, which is unfortunate. Responding to each rumor is a fool's game.

'Over the past weeks, Erica and I have realized that our best future was as a family together. Thankfully, we have resolved our differences and look forward to a new beginning.'

McIlroy put out a statement at the PGA Championship confirming the divorce and his desire to keep a difficult time respectful and amicable. He has made no mention of his 'messy' life in Scotland.