Personal Life
Brooks graduated from Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, where he starred on the track team. He was also a member of the Alpha Gamma Rho Fraternity, Pi chapter. He later completed his MBA from Oklahoma State and participated in the commencement ceremony on May 6, 2011.
Brooks married his college sweetheart, songwriter Sandy Mahl, on May 24, 1986. They met when Garth was a bouncer at a bar. Brooks and Mahl separated in March 1999, announcing their plans to divorce on October 9, 2000, and filing for divorce on November 6, 2000. The divorce became final on December 17, 2001. Throughout the mid-1990s, many tabloids reported that he was having an affair with longtime friend and collaborator Trisha Yearwood. The two have continually denied having had an affair. They did begin dating after Brooks's divorce, and married on December 10, 2005, at their home in Oklahoma, marking the second marriage for Brooks and the third for Yearwood. They own homes in Goodlettsville, Tennessee; Malibu, California; and Port St. Lucie, Florida, but primarily live on their ranch in Owasso, Oklahoma, a suburb of Tulsa.
In 2000 Brooks attempted to donate part of his liver to country music contemporary, and close friend, Chris LeDoux; however, it was found to be incompatible. LeDoux received another donated liver, but died in March 2005 due to complications from liver cancer.
Read more about this topic: Garth Brooks
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