Clubstohire misses the cut with McGinley

Victorious Ryder Cup captain Paul McGinley has taken a mulligan following a premature suggestion last year by Clubstohire. com that the golfer had "increased his investment" in the business.

Tony Judge, the chief executive of the golf club rental firm, told the Sunday Telegraph last September he was "absolutely thrilled that Paul has increased his investment in the company".

McGinley was also quoted in the story, lauding Clubstohire’s impressive growth. It also said he had agreed to extend his ambassadorial role until 2021.

Clubstohire was co-founded by Judge, a college mate of the golfer who studied marketing with him at Dublin Institute of Technology in the 1980s. The company has grown strongly since its 2010 launch, and enters the US next week.

But McGinley, who has repeatedly plugged Clubstohire since its launch, was conspicuous by his absence from the publicity material. There is also no longer any mention of him on its website.

Judge was reluctant to talk about the situation, and would say only that McGinley's "contract had ended". But what about your quotes in the Telegraph last year, I asked. Out of bounds.

McGinley got in touch to say he was never an investor in the company, although he received a “nominal” revenue share for helping it build a profile. “Now that the business has been launched and rebranded, an attempt to renegotiate a further contract was inconclusive. I am now no longer involved in the business,” said the golfer.

McGinley is known as a gentleman of the game. I presume the discussions were cordial.