Sources: NFL exec Rolapp off to PGA Tour as CEO

The PGA Tour is hiring NFL enforcement vice president Brian Rolapp arsenic its CEO to enactment alongside commissioner Jay Monahan, sources told ESPN connected Thursday.

According to ESPN's Adam Schefter and Seth Wickersham, Rolapp has agreed to permission his relation with the NFL aft spending 22 years with the league. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell sent a memo to squad executives and presidents connected Thursday, informing them of Rolapp's departure.

The PGA Tour declined remark erstwhile reached by ESPN connected Thursday, though a argumentation committee gathering is scheduled for Monday, successful which Rolapp's hiring could beryllium finalized, sources told ESPN.

The PGA Tour has been searching for a CEO since December; NASCAR commissioner Steve Phelps, TaylorMade Golf CEO David Abeles and others were besides linked to the position.

Sources told ESPN that Rolapp, arsenic the main media and concern officer, was the pb designer of the NFL's media and concern playbook during a clip erstwhile the league's maturation exploded. He is considered a imaginable occurrence for Goodell, and leaving to assistance pb different nonrecreational sports circuit isn't expected to hinder his accidental to bash that erstwhile Goodell steps down successful the future, the sources said.

Rolapp has been successful his presumption since 2017 and antecedently worked arsenic the NFL's main operating serviceman and elder vice president of media strategy and integer media. He besides worked arsenic the CEO of NFL Network and enforcement vice president of NFL Media.

In his existent role, Rolapp oversaw advertizing sales, sponsorships, and TV contracts, which reportedly gain the league much than $10 cardinal per season.

Monahan replaced Tim Finchem arsenic the PGA Tour's 4th commissioner successful January 2017. He was heavy criticized by the league's golfers and others erstwhile the circuit secretly reached a model statement successful June 2023 to signifier an confederation with Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund and the DP World Tour.

The PIF has financed the rival LIV Golf League the past 4 years. It lured distant respective PGA Tour stars, including past large champions Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Phil Mickelson, Jon Rahm and others, with guaranteed contracts worthy much than $100 million.

The sides person been attempting to negociate a woody since the model statement expired astatine the extremity of 2023; they past met astatine the White House successful February.

Monahan helped the circuit scope a imaginable $3 cardinal woody with Strategic Sports Group, a consortium of billionaire sports squad owners into the circuit's for-profit entity, PGA Tour Enterprises.

SSG, which is led by Fenway Sports Group, made an archetypal concern of $1.5 cardinal with the anticipation of different $1.5 cardinal coming later. The PGA Tour controls the for-profit company, which issued equity shares to golfers who remained loyal to the tour.

Atlanta Falcons proprietor Arthur Blank, PGA Tour subordinate directors Tiger Woods and Adam Scott, on with Monahan, were portion of the committee that selected Rolapp arsenic the caller CEO.