The PGA Tour is tapping an NFL executive as its new CEO, according to an ESPN report.
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Football insiders Adam Schefter and Seth Wickersham wrote on Thursday that the league announced to teams via memo that Brian Rolapp, the NFL’s chief media and business officer, is leaving after 22 years to take the position with the PGA Tour. Rolapp has been NFL commissioner Roger Goodell’s right-hand man, with a strong background in negotiating media deals.
Though other names had been in the mix for the PGA Tour CEO job – including former Ticketmaster chairman Jared Smith and NASCAR head Steve Phelps – Rolapp had been long considered the favourite for the newly created position with the tour.
The creation of the CEO role was announced in December by PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan.
“We are bringing new perspectives on our team to help us realise the incredible opportunities for our sport,” Monahan said in a statement at that time. “We can learn so much from the world of sport and entertainment and I’m excited to meet candidates for this role.”
Golf Digest has reached out to the PGA Tour for comment. It’s unknown when the tour might announce the hiring of Rolapp.
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Tour sources have told Golf Digest that the CEO position will primarily focus on business relationships and media rights, while the commissioner position oversees the administration and operations of the tour’s competition. The CEO will report to the tour’s board of directors and the policy board.
The move comes as the PGA Tour weighs its future direction. Two years have passed since the surprise framework agreement between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf’s financial backer, the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia. However, talks have yet to bring a deal to fruition and discussions have gone cold in the past few months after a White House meeting did not go as planned.
Conversely, in 2024 the PGA Tour announced it came to an agreement with the Strategic Sports Group for private equity investment, which coincided with the creation of a for-profit venture, PGA Tour Enterprises. SSG will invest up to $US3 billion in the tour, with an initial input of $1.5 billion. The initial framework called for PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan to be co-chair of PGA Tour Enterprises. Arthur Blank, one of the members of SSG, oversaw the CEO search.
