Bob MacIntyre perhaps painted the most apt picture of Keith Pelley’s tenure as DP World Tour boss when he played at the Valspar Championship last week in Tampa.
That the Scot was competing on these Florida fairways was due to Pelley’s most controversial contribution during his nine years at the helm of the Wentworth-based organization.
And MacIntryre’s decision to use caddy Mike Burrows’ bib to taunt American fans with the Ryder Cup result of last year’s match was also telling. It reminded us of arguably Pelley’s greatest triumph, hosting this epic event in Rome last September.
It is the 60-year-old’s final week leading the European tour before returning to his native Canada where he will become boss of the four major sports franchises in his hometown of Toronto.
When he arrived in 2015, he was already aware of plans for a golf super league. Pelley also knew his new employers were struggling to compete with the U.S.-based PGA Tour giant.
His initial ambition was to make the European tour a viable alternative for the continent’s biggest stars – in order to stem what had long become an inevitable migration across the Atlantic.
He was impetuous and combative. A little character, who wore flashy, colorful glasses with a vision of raising the little guys of Europe in an outfit to rival the big boys of the United States.
It was a laudable ambition and a Rolex series of lofty tournaments with inflated prize pools and enhanced television coverage soon followed. But these tournaments have in no way slowed the flow of talent across the Atlantic.
Pelley wanted to modernize golf, but he was hamstrung because his ultimate responsibility fell to the tour members.
This meant a diverse list of priorities and an inherent antipathy toward change unless benefits were guaranteed for the individual members he needed to convince.
It was a difficult environment as there were a lot of egos to satisfy among a wide range of members at different career stages. Keeping everyone happy was almost impossible.
But Pelley managed to improve the pace of play during his tour. There was music on some lineups and a more modern vibe at tournaments, recognizing the business opportunities in improving the fan experience.
Pelley knew the PGA Tour couldn’t be beaten and his ultimate vision was a world tour and collaboration with the United States. But there were also offers to consider from the separatist upstart Premier Golf League.
The PGL claimed massive financial support and a new and extraordinarily lucrative vision for the game. Partnering with them could have been the path to an organization that could truly rival Jay Monahan’s American tour.
But Monahan also wanted to foster a closer relationship with Europe. Pelley asked two senior executives to provide detailed analysis of both camps before ultimately opting for the American tour.
The 2020 strategic alliance with the PGA Tour was the safest option because, despite all their talk, PGL had no players signed up. And Monahan already controlled Europe’s biggest stars such as Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm.
The deal was also necessary to shore up the DP World Tour’s finances, which have been significantly and damagingly drained by the impact of covid.
The move was also a blow to the PGL, as Monahan stubbornly had no interest in dealing with newcomers to the professional golf market. And the deal with the PGA Tour meant Pelley’s hands were also tied in terms of joining forces with other organizations.
Then Saudi Arabia entered the market with force. The Kingdom’s sportwashing tactics have seen it emulate the PGL model, shaking up men’s football like never before with the 2022 arrival of the LIV tour.
Pelley was forced to act in close collaboration with Monahan. Many say the Canadian should have “closed the deal” with Saudi Arabia and that was certainly the view of several famous and celebrated European names who immediately jumped ship to LIV.
But, having also signed a massive deal to rename his circuit the DP World Tour, Pelley can claim to have secured the future of all his remaining members and that was, after all, his number one priority.
He further strengthened the relationship with the PGA Tour in June 2022, negotiating hard to provide a formal pathway for its 10 most successful players, not already exempt, to obtain prized tour cards in the United States.
This highly controversial policy became reality earlier this year and is why MacIntyre was in Florida last week.
The 27-year-old from Oban was also a member of the victorious Ryder Cup team and took part in arguably the greatest edition of the famous match which remains golf’s biggest event.
Pelley hosted the match in Italy and, at first, there was a lot of skepticism about this bold move. But a glorious week at Marco Simone’s was a resounding success – golf has never been more important.
And that has always been his vision for game development.
He had also navigated the tour through the unique challenges of covid, secured funds for mid-term prizes and left stressing the security of his finances.
As one player who served on the tour tournament committee remarked, “How grateful I am to Keith for his work ethic and enthusiasm.
“Challenges largely beyond his control throughout his tenure inhibited his desire to grow the tour and he had to act in ways that would have been unforeseen when he took office.”
Critics point to the fact that top talent is now being dealt out every year and that the European Tour is now intrinsically linked to the fate of a PGA Tour that is under massive pressure from the Saudi-funded LIV league.
Assessments of Pelley’s legacy are therefore mixed. The DP World Tour player added: “I accept that his tenure as general manager is perceived differently by some, but for me he was a good leader.”
Having followed his mandate closely, I believe he is also a warm, genuine and caring man. He has an astute business mind and did the best he could with the cards he was dealt.
But he leaves with many problems still to be resolved. Men’s professional football is in turmoil and his successor, Ryder Cup director Guy Kinnings, faces a formidable opponent.