Rory McIlroy has revealed that a fallout with his former management agency resulted in a brief rift between himself and Shane Lowry.
In the present day, the pair are firm friends and have been known to support each other's exploits in the game of golf.
But in an interview with Paul Kimmage of the Irish Independent, McIlroy revealed that things were not always rosy.
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And the conflict came about as a result of the Holywood golfer's split from Horizon Sports - the agency who also represented Lowry.
He explained: "I would say very close early on, not-so-close in the middle, and closer than ever now.
"We’re being managed by the same person [Conor Ridge], in the same agency [Horizon Sports].
"So, super close at that point [circa 2013].
"Then I had a fall-out with Horizon in 2013 and it got a bit messy for a couple of years, not because one of us had done wrong to the other, but because of the circumstances."
McIlroy outlined that it wasn't until Lowry's win in the Bridgestone Invitational in 2015 that the friendship got back on track.
He continued: "Shane won in Akron and I reached out to him.
"The BBC Sports Personality of the Year was in Belfast that year, and we went for a few drinks afterwards and had a really good chat.
"So it's really nice since he started playing here that we've got close again.
"Erica and Wendy [Shane's wife] get on great, and our kids are a similar age. It's all good.
And McIlroy also revealed that money was the root cause of most of the ire.
He explained: "..do you know what it was over?
"Money, exactly. It's the root of all evil."
McIlroy and Lowry most recently went toe-to-toe at the BMW Championship.
Lowry came up trumps on that occasion despite having McIlroy breathing down his neck and trying to force a playoff.
And despite being pipped by the Clara man, the pair joined forces in celebrating the win - with McIlroy purportedly enjoying himself even more than the winner.
In an interview with No Laying Up, Lowry said: "Sunday night was good, it was nice.
"A few friends came over and we had a place in the hotel with food and drink.
"Rory called down and I think he was one of the last to leave. I was in bed before him.
"So he was still celebrating his Fed-Ex win. I was actually in bed at 12.00, believe it or not, because I had a golf day the following day."
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