LPGA commissioner Mollie Marcoux Samaan, who helped the ladies’s skilled golf tour attain unprecedented heights in reputation and purse sizes the previous 4 years, will step down on Jan. 9, the tour introduced Monday.
Liz Moore, the LPGA’s chief authorized and expertise officer, will function interim commissioner till a seek for Samaan’s alternative is finalized.
“On this position, I’ve had the privilege of working alongside a exceptional neighborhood of athletes, academics, companions, match operators, business colleagues, media, followers, volunteers, and workers who share a deep dedication to rising the LPGA and utilizing the group’s distinctive platform to empower and advance ladies and ladies,” Marcoux Samaan mentioned in an announcement.
“I’m happy with the unprecedented development the LPGA has loved since I started my tenure. The technique we now have constructed for development and influence together with the infrastructure we now have added to capitalize on the great alternative forward will serve the LPGA nicely within the coming many years.”
Marcoux Samaan mentioned she was stepping apart partially to “have extra time to cheer on our three superb youngsters as they stay their goals.”
Marcoux Samaan’s closing yr as LPGA commissioner was marked by the circuit’s failure to get followers to the opening spherical of the Solheim Cup at Robert Trent Jones Golf Membership in Gainesville, Virginia, in September. 1000’s of followers had been left stranded at parking heaps, inflicting many to overlook the ceremonial opening tee pictures.
On the time, Marcoux Samaan took accountability for the failure.
“On the finish of the day, I am the chief of the group and I’ve to personal it,” Marcoux Samaan mentioned.
Throughout Marcoux Samaan’s tenure because the ninth LPGA commissioner, the tour’s prize fund elevated by greater than 90% and the typical earnings for the highest 100 golfers elevated from about $570,000 in 2021 to greater than $1 million this previous season, the tour mentioned in a information launch.
Because of the recognition of world No. 1 golfer Nelly Korda and others, the LPGA mentioned it had document fan engagement this previous season. However others criticized the LPGA for failing to benefit from the rising reputation of ladies’s sports activities just like the WNBA and different skilled leagues have completed lately.
Eventually month’s CME Tour Championship, Marcoux Samaan defended the job she’d completed main the tour.
“I focus every single day on attempting to help the athletes, to attempt to develop the tour, and to attempt to make this one of the best place on the earth to play and to present extra alternatives to women and girls. So, I really feel just like the statistics actually converse for themselves. I feel we’re experiencing huge development. That is actually what my job is.”
Marcoux Samaan beforehand labored as Princeton’s athletic director. She changed Mike Whan as LPGA commissioner; Whan is now CEO of the USA Golf Affiliation.
“Since becoming a member of the LPGA in 2021, Mollie has been instrumental in solidifying our place as the worldwide chief in ladies’s skilled golf, realizing document development in participant earnings and fan engagement,” LPGA Board Chair John B. Veihmeyer mentioned in an announcement.
“Mollie has been a steadfast advocate for fairness within the sport and has labored tirelessly to broaden alternatives for girls and ladies by way of the sport. I’m assured that the LPGA is well-positioned for continued success as we construct on the expansion trajectory of the previous three and a half years of Mollie’s management. We deeply admire the lasting influence of Mollie’s many contributions.”
