After almost nine years in the role, Keith Pelley will step down as CEO of the European tour at the end of March. Guy Kinnings, current deputy CEO and executive director, will take over for Pelley starting on April 2.
Pelley is only the fourth CEO since the formation of the European tour in 1972. He took the job in 2015, leaving his position as president of Rogers Media. His philosophy of “transforming global golf” led the European Tour to undertake new strategies and innovate with new formats and technologies, becoming industry leaders in the process by broadening its appeal to new and existing members.
Under Pelley’s purview, the European tour group introduced the Rolex Series, DP World’s title partnership of the group’s main Tour, the G4D Tour for Golfers with a Disability, mixed events with the LET and LPGA, and staged two successful Ryder Cups on European soil. He also guided the Tour through the global COVID-19 pandemic, negotiated the full acquisition of European Tour Productions from IMG, and formed strategic alliances with the PGA TOUR, the Sunshine Tour and the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia. In an ongoing effort to make global golf more aligned, he also helped establish pathways for other tours onto the DP World Tour.
“It has been an incredible honor to be the chief executive of this wonderful institution for the past eight and a half years,” Pelley said. “When I came over from Canada back in 2015, I set out to create a culture of innovation and to grow our prize funds and our Tour for our members by ensuring that we appealed to new, younger and more diverse audiences.
“We have done that and so much more because our players, staff, partners, broadcasters and fans have all fundamentally bought into that philosophy that we are in the entertainment industry. I would therefore like to thank everyone for their support and commitment to innovation and evolution in our sport.”
Pelley will return to his native Toronto and will become president and CEO of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Ltd. MLS’s brands include the Toronto Maple Leafs in the NHL, the Toronto Raptors in the NBA, the Toronto Argonauts in the Canadian Football League and MLS team Toronto FC, as well as Scotiabank Arena.
Pelley has been a longtime fixture on Golf Inc.’s Most Powerful list, placing No. 14 in 2022 and No. 19 in 2023.
Martin Slumbers to step down end of this year
Martin Slumbers, the CEO and secretary of The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews, will step down from his role at the end of the year after what will be nine years in the position. Before his departure, he will oversee the 152nd Open at Royal Troon, the return of the AIG Women’s Open to St Andrews and the 43rd Curtis Cup match at Sunningdale.
During his time leading The R&A, Slumbers has been instrumental in modernizing its activities. One of his earliest actions was helping develop The R&A’s first Playbook in 2018, the purpose of which is described as “[trying] to make golf open, accessible and inclusive and ensure it is thriving 50 years from now.”
He also had oversight of the 2019 modernization of the Rules of Golf, the roll-out of World Handicap System in 2020 and the Distance Insights process. Slumbers has served on the boards of the Official World Golf Ranking, the International Golf Federation and the LET.
“It has been a privilege to serve golf at the highest level,” Slumbers said. “It is a role that I have been proud to carry out on behalf of The R&A’s employees, the members of The Royal and Ancient Golf Club and all our global partners. In any career, there is a time to allow the next generation to have its turn. I am grateful to have had the honor, for nearly a decade, to have been the custodian of all that The R&A and the game of golf more broadly represents.”
Sean Pyun appointed as new CEO for Golfzon America
GOLFZON has appointed Sean Pyun as the new CEO of Golfzon America. The move is designed to accelerate GOLFZON’s U.S. growth, which is the market the company sees as having the strongest growth potential.
Pyun has spent the last 16 years in various roles at the LPGA, including managing director of International Business Affairs and vice president and managing director of LPGA Asia and chief business officer, Asia. During his time there, Pyun facilitated multiple strategic business opportunities, such as generating title sponsorship deals in seven different countries including several tournaments in the United States.
“Golfzon has made tremendous strides in North America in recent years and I’m confident that we’ll be able to secure substantially more market penetration in the near future,” Pyun said. “The potential for growth, combined with our industry-leading technology bodes very well for Golfzon to soon be as dominant in North America as we are in other parts of the world.”
