Rory McIlroy has revealed he ignored the fears post the terrible terrorist attacks in Paris to ask Erica Stroll to marry him.

Last fortnight, and two weeks following the deadly attacks, McIlroy showed his romantic side for a second time in two years to get himself engaged.

“I wouldn’t say it was a traditional proposal in any sense,” said the 26-year-old, speaking for the first time about the happy event.

‘We had planned the trip in May but we were unsure whether to go after what happened. So we decided to go and if we didn’t like it, or the mood of the place, we were going to go somewhere else.

“But when we got there, it just felt great. There were security checks as you went into the shops but people were just getting on with things. So we felt comfortable, and I thought if I proposed at the start of the trip it might make it even better. So we went out for dinner and that was that.”

Of course, it was on New Years Eve on Sydney Harbour in December 2013 McIlroy proposed to Danish-born tennis ace Caroline Wozniacki but then the engagement lasted less than six months, and with McIlroy near in tears on the eve of last year’s BMW PGA Championship speaking of his bust-up with Wozniacki.

McIlroy has first met Stroll, a former PGA Tour employee, during the 2012 Ryder Cup at Medinah.

“I know you’ve seen Erica around tournaments a lot but we really have tried to keep it low key,” he said.

“She is a low-key person but she brings a level of normality to everything. She has a calming presence and that’s not just on me, it is noticeable in any company.

Rory McIlroy gets engaged to Erica Stroll

“She never wants to be the centre of attention and is always comfortable in the background. It is great having someone like that and someone who knows what it is all about, having been around the game.

“She has been a great influence on me and has brought such a great balance to my life, between who I am when people see me out in the public eye and who I am at home. So that side of my life is really good just now. We are excited, our parents are excited, so it is a really happy time.”

And the four-time Major winner spoke also of the ‘balance’ Stroll brings to his hectic life.

“It’s about balance isn’t it?’ he said.

“I’m all for people scrutinising my golf or criticising me for rupturing an ankle ligament playing football with my mates. But you have to be happy away from the course and the people around you have to be happy. If you have that balance, it makes it so much easier to play”

The Northern Irishman had been speaking at the Dublin headquarters of Facebook, where he was doing a Q&A for his followers – see earlier www.golfbyt9urmiss.com story

On Sunday he will attend the SPOTY awards in Belfast — a pretty good effort given the ludicrous fact that he was overlooked for the main prize last year, despite compiling the greatest season in the history of European golf — before heading over to Rochester, New York, where he will spend Christmas with Erica and her family.