Keith Pelley, the chief executive of DP World Tour, is leaving his position.
Pelley has been in charge since August 2015. This week, he announced that he had accepted the role of President & Chief Executive Officer of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment. The company is the parent of the NHL Toronto Maple Leafs and NBA Toronto Raptors as well as Toronto’s MLS, CFL, and MLS franchises.
Count seven-time DP World Tour winner Gonzalo Fernandez Castano among those who wish Pelley the best but aren’t necessarily sorry to see him leave.
Fernandez Castano wrote in an email: “I think KP’s exit might be good for the tour, as some members have lost faith in his guidance during the last few months.” “I wouldn’t like to have been in his shoes during the last few months, when he was dealing with the pandemic, and with a very poor financial situation that was mostly caused by poor management. (oversized structure of tour, and promoting and funding most of their tournaments)” Fernandez-Castano said in an email.
The veteran, 43, gave Pelley some credit for his efforts to maintain the circuit’s competitiveness in an ever-changing landscape. But at the end of it all, he said that Pelley left the Tour in worse shape than he had started.
“When he first arrived, he created the Rolex Series to compete with the PGA Tour. This was a bad idea as it never worked because they didn’t attract the best players. How we ended up as a second tour to the PGA Tour is a mystery to me. I don’t understand why you would give your top 10 players to your biggest rival every year. How is that sustainable over the long-term?
“On the plus side, he didn’t fear innovation, as he demonstrated with the Golf Sixes and the ShotClock Events, and (he provided) outstanding management for the 2020 season with the Covid Pandemic, where he had us playing pretty quickly compared to other sports.
“Some things could’ve been done better, like the negotiations about the OWGR point where the DP World player have lost.” He opened the door for the Saudis into the world of professional Golf and he did not take advantage of it.”
Golfweek interviewed four former European Ryder Cup athletes earlier this week. They expressed similar concerns over some actions that backfired. Pelley, who spoke this week in Dubai said he will stay until April 2, and that he is committed to seeing that the framework agreement signed between the PGA Tour and DP World Tour as well as the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia becomes a formalized contract before he leaves.
Fernandez Castano stated, “I wish him all the best for his new venture back in Canada, but I won’t miss him.” “I’m sorry he leaves the Tour in a worse position than when he arrived and I’m looking forward to what Guy Kinnings, and his new management will bring to the European Tour over the next few years.”
