PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem’s idea for the future of golf, a "unified global organization overseeing both the men’s and women’s pro game everywhere it exists," faces a growing impediment in the European Tour, which "wants no part of it," according to Brian Costa of the WALL STREET JOURNAL. Former European Tour CEO George O'Grady once said golf was "evolving toward" the idea. But new CEO Keith Pelley said, "If it were commercially viable, we would look at any idea, but I just don’t know how it would be." Finchem and Pelley have both "outlined strikingly disparate visions for the future of the pro game." Pelley is "adamant that in the years ahead," his tour will be "able to increase the prize money on offer and become a more formidable competitor with the PGA Tour, keeping top Europeans that flee the continent in search of bigger purses and attracting more top Americans to its events." But Finchem, who is expected to retire in the coming months, "mostly shrugs off that kind of talk, saying Pelley will come around to his idea eventually." Finchem’s central argument is that all of the major pro tours, including the PGA, European and LPGA, "would grow richer under one umbrella." Beyond having a stronger, single brand, Finchem cited the ability they would have "to pool together worldwide media rights." He said that a global tour "would have more value to current PGA Tour sponsors." But pro tours "are not like team sports leagues controlled by owners." They "exist to serve the interests of their players." Pelley is considering changes "both large and small to make golf more appealing to modern tastes." Costa notes getting the world’s best female golfers on board "may prove easier." In March, the PGA Tour and LPGA "announced a strategic alliance that will include joint marketing programs" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 6/30).
