A longtime member of the PGA Tour policy board has resigned following the framework agreement between the Tour, DP World Tour and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund to create a new global golf entity.
According to a report in the Washington Post, former AT&T executive Randall Stephenson has left his position due to “serious concerns” over the proposed deal, which still needs to be passed by the Tour’s 10-member board. Stephenson joined the board in 2012 but said the framework agreement “is not one that I can objectively evaluate or, in good conscience support, particularly in light of the U.S. intelligence report concerning Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.”
“I joined this board 12 years ago to serve the best players in the world and to expand the virtues of sportsmanship instilled through the game of golf,” Stephenson wrote in a letter to fellow board members obtained by the Post. “I hope, as this board moves forward, it will comprehensively rethink its governance model and keep its options open to evaluate alternative sources of capital beyond the current framework agreement.”
Stephenson also said he planned to resign within a week of the deal being announced but stayed on after the news that PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan was stepping away to deal with a health issue. Golfweek was first to report on Friday that Monahan would be returning to his post, and the Tour confirmed the commissioner would be back July 17.
Golfweek has approached the PGA Tour for comment.
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