Golf:Rory McIlroy has revealed he left the stable of former manager Andrew 'Chubby' Chandler's because he felt he was "being led down the wrong path".

The 22-year-old made the decision in October and has won three times since, rising to first in the world rankings, before slipping back to second ahead of this weekend's US Masters.

Quoted by www.irishgolfdesk.com, he said: "I felt like the path I was going down wasn't the path I wanted to go down."

McIlroy also regretted giving up his PGA Tour card at the end of 2010 as well as not going to the Players Championship at Sawgrass under the influence of Chandler and International Sports Management stablemate Lee Westwood.

On Sawgrass, McIlroy, who is now managed by Dublin-based Horizon Sports Management, said: "That's another example of being involved with Chubby and ISM and maybe being led down the wrong path, or a path that I didn't want to go down. It was something I sort of felt like I had to do.

"I think just spending a little bit of time around Chubby and Lee and hearing their view of the PGA Tour - obviously they're very pro-European Tour - while I've always been one who wanted to play on the PGA Tour. Not playing Sawgrass was one of the decisions I look back on and regret a little bit."

On Thursday, McIlroy will tee off at Augusta, the scene of his now infamous capitulation, where he let a four-shot lead and his first major slip away on the final day when signing for an 80.

“It was definitely a defining moment," Rory said, who recovered to win the US Open three months later. "It could have been the crossroads of my career. I could have did what I did on Sunday at Augusta and let it affect me and let it get to me, and maybe gone into a slump or feel down or feel sorry for myself.

“But you know, I had enough good people around me not to let that happen and I was able to go down the right path and do the right things to put everything right and win the next major.”