Top NFL executive Brian Rolapp takes over as PGA Tour CEO in bombshell move
Top NFL executive Brian Rolapp takes over as PGA Tour CEO in bombshell move
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By ALEX RASKIN and ASSOCIATED PRESS
The PGA Tour has found its new boss in NFL executive Brian Rolapp, who announced the news with an open letter and photo of himself alongside Tiger Woods on social media Tuesday morning.
'I come from the National Football League, so I'll be the first to admit—I've got a lot to learn about golf,' he wrote. 'But I love the game, I play the game, and I am a PGA TOUR fan myself. To that end, I cannot wait to meet every one of our players, get in front of as many fans as possible, and better understand the needs of our partners. I'm all in.'
Commissioner Jay Monahan is leaving the PGA Tour next year after a decade that ends with a league fractured by the Saudi riches of LIV Golf, turning it over to Rolapp in a new role as CEO.
Rolapp, the chief media and business officer for the NFL and a key executive for Commissioner Roger Goodell, was introduced Tuesday as CEO, a position that had never existed in the tour's six decades of existence.
Monahan announced last December the search for a CEO. Still unclear was Monahan's role until the announcement of Rolapp.
The Commissioner will shift his day-to-day responsibilities to Rolapp and focus more on his position on the PGA Tour board, along with the commercial PGA Tour Enterprises board, through 2026.
The PGA Tour has found its next boss in NFL executive Brian Rolapp, who announced the news with an open letter and photo of himself alongside Tiger Woods on social media Tuesday
Jay Monahan
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The future of both PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan (L) and Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan (R) remain unclear amid merger talks
Monahan announced an agreement with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, which was never finalized. From that framework agreement came a for-profit arm, PGA Tour Enterprises, which Rolapp would oversee.
The tour brought on SSG in January 2024, and soon announced a first-of-its-kind equity plan for players.
Monahan said in December of the CEO search, 'We're bringing new perspectives on to our team to help us realize the incredible opportunities ahead for our sport.'
Meanwhile, negotiations with PIF to bring the world's best players together stalled in the spring, even with the involvement of President Donald Trump, as LIV Golf wants to keep its team concept in place. LIV Golf since has hired Scott O'Neil as its new CEO.
Rolapp brings strong media connections to the PGA Tour which is starting to plan for new broadcast deals that run through 2030. The PGA Tour has seen a strong uptick this year through extensive feedback with its fans, including a recent decision to revamp the Tour Championship to crown its FedEx Cup champion.
Arthur Blank, the Atlanta Falcons owner who is part of SSG, was part of the search committee that included Woods and Adam Scott, Monahan, PGA Tour board chairman Joe Gorder and Sam Kennedy from SSG.
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