GOLF: RICHARD GILLISlooks at the colourful business world of Chubby Chandler, manager to British Open champion Darren Clarke, as well as Rory McIlroy

STANDING AT the bar of an upmarket Turkish hotel, Chubby Chandler turned to his drinking partners and offered his apologies. “Sorry gentlemen, there’s a bloke from The Irish Times here. I’ve got to go and talk a load of bollocks.”

His fellow drinkers laughed, nodding their heads appreciatively. Typical Chubby they thought, what a kidder, what a guy.

It’s an image he has taken care to cultivate since entering the Jerry Maguire world of the sports agent 22 years ago: a bit of wheeler dealer in the Harry Redknapp mould, a bit woo a bit whey, but basically a good bloke, the type you’d like to share a beer with after a round.

Contrary to his self-aware joke, Chandler has a reputation of being good with journalists – he returns calls and answers questions with straight (ish) answers – and as a result gets a favourable press.

This marks him out to be something of a maverick. Agents are the point at which sport and money meet, and many of them know it. In this corporate environment, relationships between player and manager can be cold, calculating affairs where the “talent” is sometimes referred to as a “property”, that must be leveraged, just like any other asset.

By contrast, Darren Clarke’s emotional acceptance speech on Sunday at Royal St George’s contained a touching tribute to the man who has “looked after him” since turning pro as a 21-year-old.

Clarke joked that we’d seen a lot of Chandler on TV lately, “he’s the one that fills the screen” (ironically Clarke was due to start a WeightWatchers diet following the British Open at the behest of Chandler who has shed a few pounds himself of late).

Chandlers high media profile stems from the stunning success enjoyed by players represented by his company, International Sports Marketing (ISM). In four of the last five Major championships, the man from Bolton’s bulky frame has loomed large at the 72nd hole to greet the winner as he walks off the green.

This year Charl Schwartzel (who won US Masters in April), Rory McIlroy and Clarke make up three-parts of the “Chubby Slam”. It would have been even better had former client Graeme McDowell not left the agency three years before his 2010 US Open victory.

Heady days indeed. But it wasn’t always like this. Until South African Louis Oosterhuisen’s surprise British Open victory as St Andrews last year, no ISM player had ever won a Major tournament. Ernie Els, a current client, won his two US Opens as an IMG player.

The lack of green jackets and Claret Jugs nagged away at Chandler’s reputation, compounded by the suggestion that ISM was a bit of a drinking club. There was a time when enjoying a round with Lee Westwood, Clarke and Chandler would have had a very different meaning. Throw in some of his clients from the cricket world, such Andrew “Freddie” Flintoff and Steve Harmison, and a trend is discernable.

But rather than attempt to rebrand, Chandler has revelled in his reputation as a maverick. As a player Chandler won once on the European Tour and became an agent as his own playing career approached its end. ISM began life with a £10,000 (€11,421) overdraft and a less than stellar client list made up of popular journeymen, such as Carl Mason, Denis Durnian and Derrick Cooper.

This was a period when the market for golfing talent was dominated by IMG, the agency founded by Mark McCormack which until recently has managed the career of Tiger Woods. It was McCormack who famously agreed to represent a young Arnold Palmer, a mutually lucrative lifelong arrangement that was sealed by a handshake.

This has echoes of Chandler’s relationship with Darren Clarke – “He’s my most infuriating favourite son” – who has never seen the need to sign a formal contract. “If it was good enough for Arnold Palmer it’s okay for me” was how Clarke later described it.

However much Chandler has made for Clarke over the years, in one respect the player has paid his agent back in spades. It was he who encouraged an 18-year-old Rory McIlroy to go to ISM, a golden ticket if ever there was one: 20 per cent of “the next Tiger Woods” is what every agent dreams of, and handled properly should fund further ISM expansion – he has recently dipped his toes into the murky world of football.

With such an opportunity comes a higher level of scrutiny, however, and Chubby’s next test will be the handling of the nascent “brand McIlroy”.

This is trickier than it sounds.

The spectacular rise and fall of Tiger Woods as a commercial animal has changed the sports marketing landscape. Chandler’s job will be to maximise Rory’s earnings without appearing overtly commercial.

Speaking to him the week before the British Open, Chandler was well aware of this balancing act, distancing his client from the Tiger comparison, while simultaneously bidding up his price to prospective sponsors. “If a brand wants four days of his time, I’m saying that only two can be golf, so he doesn’t get overwhelmed by playing stodgy golf days. If we do it well, he’ll end up still being Rory McIlroy not a marketing property. We’re encouraging him to be 22 years old.”

It was classic Chubby Chandler: charming and affable, but with an eye on the next deal. Selling. Always selling.

ANDREW 'CHUBBY' CHANDLER: The Facts

Who is he?

The 58-year-old son of a postman from Bolton. A former European Tour player he set up his own agency International Sports Marketing (ISM) in 1989.

Who are his clients?

ISMs client list includes Rory McIlroy, Darren Clarke, Lee Westwood and Ernie Els. Other sports represented include cricket. Former England captains Michael Vaughan and Andrew Flintoff are clients, as is Muttiah Muralitharan, the Sri Lanka world record holding bowler.

Who else is involved?

ISM is backed by founders of Setanta Sport Leonard Ryan and Mickey ORourke, along with former head of Setanta GB Mark OMeara and Shane McMahon, son of World Wrestling Entertainment chairman Vincent McMahon.

What are ISMs future plans?

Recent expansion has seen ISM move into snooker and football. The company also has interests in America and India.