Paulina Gretzky, daughter of hockey legend Wayne Gretzky, long adhered to a very specific set of dating rules. Having grown up around athletes, she refused to date them. She believed they viewed her as little more than a trophy and that any interest they had in her was insincere.
But things changed in 2011. Gretzky broke her own set of rules when she began dating golfer Dustin Johnson.
During an appearance on the “Pillows and Beer” podcast this past Thursday, the 32-year-old Gretzky explained how her anti-athlete wall had been torn down.
“How I looked at it was like, I don’t ever want to date somebody that’s an athlete because, whether or not it was me or not, I felt like it was like a achievement for them. Being with me, dating me, whatever it was, it just didn’t feel authentic,” Gretzky explained. “I truly stayed away from athletes, I really did.”
Then she met Johnson, the world’s No. 3-ranked golfer.
“Dustin was the first person, I won’t talk about the other one before … I didn’t like that, really,” Gretzky said, denying that she was ever a cleat-chaser.
Gretzky and Johnson became engaged in 2013 and have two sons together — Tatum, 6, and River, 4. More than sports and entertainment, family life has become their top priority.
“For me, golf was always the most important thing. And now, it’s Paulina and the kids. And they’ll always be the most important,” Johnson told Golfweek last September. “Obviously, I love the game of golf, competing and playing. But they’re the most important thing.”
By all accounts, Gretzky made the right decision when breaking her own rules. And now, she and Johnson will be wed at Blackberry Farm in Tennessee.
