The newly launched PGA Tour Enterprises unveiled a 13-member board of directors on Wednesday night, a group that will lead all PGA Tour-related commercial activities and focus on fan engagement, growth and new opportunities in sponsorship, commercial and media.
The board will consist of the six current PGA Tour player-directors — Patrick Cantlay, Peter Malnati, Adam Scott, Webb Simpson, Jordan Spieth and Tiger Woods — and three board members who will represent the PGA Tour: Joe Ogilvie, a former pro, Joe Gorder, an independent director on the PGA Tour policy board, and commissioner Jay Monahan.
The remaining members of the board will be made up of four prominent investors a part of the Strategic Sports Group, which announced an initial $1.5 billion investment into the Tour in January. Those members will be John Henry, Arthur Blank, Andrew Cohen and Sam Kennedy.
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Ogilvie will serve as a director liaison of the PGA Tour player-director board and PGA Tour Enterprises board. Woods will serve as vice chairman, and Monahan as CEO.
In the release, Monahan called it a milestone for the organization and the step needed for its future.
“Our current and former players will provide essential insight into our members’ priorities and needs,” he said. “And we welcome key SSG members to the leadership team, whose exceptional track records and achievements in global professional sports will lend a wealth of knowledge into the opportunities ahead for the PGA Tour. Their expertise will undoubtedly play a pivotal role in the success and growth of our commercial initiatives.”
A chairman of the PGA Tour Enterprises board of directors will be elected at an upcoming meeting.
While this was a logical next step in the Tour’s relationship with the SSG, there’s still no news regarding its pending merger with the Saudi-backed LIV Golf league. Merger talks were extended after a deadline couldn’t be reached by Dec. 31, 2023.