McIlroy and Westwood paired together

Rory McIlroy and former ISM stable-mate Lee Westwood have been paired together for the opening rounds of the Shanghai Masters.

The US Open champion left Andrew 'Chubby' Chandler's ISM management group last week, which Westwood described on Twitter as a "bizarre decision".

With uncertainty surrounding McIlroy's reasons for leaving ISM, the pairing will certainly add a bit of spice to the tournament, which starts tomorrow at Lake Malaren Golf Club.

Speaking to the Daily Mail, Chandler said: "I don't know whether it was his girlfriend getting in his ear or someone else but I thought we were doing a pretty good job, to be honest, and I think that's how the outside world saw it.

"I don't know if Rory didn't like me being in the press but he referred to me as a 'celebrity manager' a couple of times, which I thought was an odd thing to say."

McIlroy is yet to give a reason behind his decision, but has joined close friend and compatriot Graeme McDowell on the books of Dublin-based company Horizon Sports Management.