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5 months ago
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Rory McIlroy was pictured hugging CBS journalist Amanda Balionis on Sunday just minutes after they had finished a TV interview amid rumors of a romance between the pair.
The pair have been in the headlines in recent weeks after McIlroy filed for divorce from wife Erica Stoll, while Balionis ditched her wedding ring and abandoned her married name.
McIlroy shot a final-round 64 as he ultimately came up short at the RBC Canadian Open at Hamilton Golf and Country Club, despite his encouraging return to form.
Minutes later, the Northern Irishman went in front of the cameras to reflect on his performance in a one-on-one interview with Balionis on CBS Sports.
Pictures obtained by DailyMail.com show the pair embracing after the interview, during which they shared several laughs as they discussed his performance.
Rory McIlroy was pictured hugging CBS journalist Amanda Balionis after their TV interview
The CBS reporter spoke to McIlroy after the Canadian open and they embraced afterwards
Balionis and McIlroy were all smiles as they spoke while the cameras weren't rolling
'I don't think so,' McIlroy told Balionis when asked if his score of 13-under-par would be good enough to win. 'I wish it was. I had a couple of good opportunities on the way in... selfishly it would nice if it was enough.
'But Bob is a good friend of mine, a Ryder Cup teammate and it would be really good to see him get the job done.'
He added: 'We had a great weekend. It's probably not going to be enough but it is a definitely a really good weekend to build on.'
McIlroy and Balionis then shared a joke about his pairing with Tom Kim. 'Is there something to you two being really comfortable with one another? He seems like a little brother to everybody.'
McIlroy laughed before replying: 'He definitely makes me feel old!'
Golf fans have been left to wonder just how close the pair have become.
Neither McIlroy nor Balionis has publicly commented on the rumors but reports last week insisted the pair are 'not dating and only have a personal relationship'.
Rory McIlroy was interviewed by CBS journalist Amanda Balionis following the Canadian Open
McIlroy's divorce from wife Erica Stoll sparked rumors of a romance between the pair
Balionis and Bryn Renner started dating in 2019 and got engaged in 2021. They wed a year later
This was the Northern Irishman's first PGA Tour outing since the PGA Championship at Valhalla, where he finished in a tie for 12th.
The year's second major followed his win at the Wells Fargo Championship in Charlotte, North Carolina last month. McIlroy, 35, filed to divorce Stoll, 36, just 24 hours after that victory.
They had been married for seven years and it later emerged that McIlroy did not inform his estranged wife that he intended to divorce her in person.
Instead the four-time major winner hired a police officer to serve the divorce papers to Stoll at their family home.
Stoll, a New York state native, was served the legal documents by Carl Woods - a Palm Beach police officer, who also runs a process serving business, CW Services & Associates, according to court documents.
Woods turned up unannounced at the McIlroys' lavish $22million marital mansion in Jupiter, Florida at 10.30am ET on May 13 and handed Stoll a copy of McIlroy's divorce petition.
Balionis, meanwhile, married Bryn Renner in 2022. Renner is a 34-year-old former NFL quarterback and former quarterbacks coach at Florida International University, with the Panthers competing in the FBS-level Conference USA.
The pair reportedly got together in 2019 and spent more than four years as an item before Balionis appeared publicly without her wedding band for the first time.
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