One of the biggest sports business stories of the past year has been in golf where the two major tours - European and PGA Tour - are in what some have called an existential battle for control of the game at the highest level. A new rival, the Golf Premier League led by Greg Norman and backed by Saudi money, is attempting to disrupt the tours, by offering enormous sums to the very best players. That story is moving as we speak, as major stars such as Dustin Johnson and Bryson Dechambeau back away from their earlier enthusiasm for the project.
Whatever happens, our guest today is at the epicentre of the story.
Guy Kinnings, deputy chief executive of the European Tour and formerly head of golf at IMG. So, poacher turned gamekeeper, who in his previous role would have been advising players as to whether to take the cheque or stay within the tour structure, and get a slightly lower cheque.
Chubby Chandler, founder of rival ISM agency and a former guest of the podcast said of Kinnings: “Guy has got a range of skills that the European Tour needs. He has run golf tournaments, big accounts, hired players, hired people to look after players, sold sponsorship for players, sold sponsorship for tournaments. That is an unbelievable range of skills. It is the first time (Keith) Pelley has had a really good shoulder to lean on for European Tour knowledge”.
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