The LPGA Tour is in the midst of searching for its next commissioner. Former commish Carolyn Bivens was forced into resignation after a formal letter of no confidence from many keynote players on the Tour was delivered to her desk. After an initial vow not to acquiesce to player demands, Bivens caved and Retired Rear Admiral Marty Evans became the interim commissioner.
Just last week, one of the primary candidates to succeed in the position — WNBA head Donna Orender — gave as much of a public dismissal of interest in that job as is socially acceptable. If you fully believe what Golf World's Ron Sirak has reported, then that leaves one candidate who is on the A-list and has not expressed disinterest in the job.
That man is Pete Bevacqua. Bevacqua is the Chief Business Officer for the USGA. He has been in that position for nearly three years and formed critical relationships for the national golf rulemaking body, including those with American Express and Lexus. Bevacqua is the lone man to be on SportsBusiness Journal's 40 Under 40 list of up-and=coming sports professionals. The man clearly has the pedigree of someone who could help the LPGA Tour in sustaining its existing relationships and forge new ones.
In addition to being a golf businessman, he is in touch with the best of the best in women's golf. Bevacqua has a strong relationship with Annika Sorenstam, and they spent significant time talking at an American Express function at the USGA's headquarters in Far Hills, NJ, yesterday.
Though the details of that conversation are not known, Sorenstam has been chiming in to the LPGA Board of Directors since Bivens' dismissal on issues as they pertain to the current players on Tour. She is the voice of those players whose professional futures depend on the capability of the next commissioner. Having forged a relationship with Bevacqua seems to suggest that Sorenstam may well signal an approval with his selection to become the next LPGA Tour commissioner.
If that is true and Bevacqua is the selection of the Tour and its headhunter firm Spencer Stuart, then the question lies in his willingness to take on the challenge that the Tour presents. Given the environment that the LPGA is trying to salvage strained sponsorships and forge new ones, Bevacqua would have to hit the ground running to make quick inroads in firming up the 2010 schedule that remains with many question marks.
He would also have to do so with less staff, as interim commissioner Evans has let go seven staffers in anticipation of tough personnel decisions that a new boss would have to make.
In other words, if Bevacqua is the man for the job, then the ball truly is in his court. Should he take the job?
Bevacqua did not tip his hand one way or the other in a conversation with me yesterday afternoon. We spent several minutes talking about the business of his current employer — the USGA. From subjects spanning the money behind the 2013 Open at Merion to RBS' draw to the USGA's grants program, Bevacqua is on message and point. USGA staffers are not even certain of his thought process or leanings were he to be offered the job.
But, if he were, the question in favor of taking the job is simple. Could he do any worse than Carolyn Bivens? Often times, the standard for a job candidate is that of their predecessor. While Bivens accomplished several significant business goals for the Tour — including several media rights deals — she also lost serious ground with tournament owners and sponsors. Bevacqua, or any new commissioner, would pick up where Marty Evans left off in restoring these strained business relationships. What will be critical to restoring them is the recognition that the LPGA Tour is a close-knit bunch who are not prepared to be barnstormed by a Madison Avenue-type.
Further, the LPGA Tour could draw criticism from close observers that are sensitive to the transition from a female commissioner — the Tour's first. Were a male to take the job, there will be critics on both sides that have ammo with the fact that a second woman would not be given the chance to direct the Tour. Though this would have no rational basis, it is a shot that would be lobbed in niche circles.
That kind of fringe criticism would likely not bother someone like Bevacqua, a focused man who has the presence of someone who would do well in the executive suite. He is a conversation starter, but certainly not a dictator. Simultaneously, he can clearly be observed ready to forge relationships based on listening instead of demands.
He spoke to me about what the USGA's corporate sponsors have brought to the organization other than dollars. In American Express came a better understanding of business and membership intelligence. With IBM came a catapult into the digital age with their web presence. Bevacqua is interested in relationships that not only have a monetary component, but a symbiosis that improves the culture and learning of the USGA.
The LPGA Tour is sorely lacking in many of the areas that were gaps with the USGA. Though not to say that the USGA is the gold standard for organizational perfection, it is not a coincidence that the reputation of the governing body and its championship experiences has improved during his tenure as Chief Business Officer.
While the golf world speculates about his and the LPGA Tour's future, though, Pete Bevacqua will continue working deals, rooms, and people with a constant focus for the USGA — who signs his paychecks. But will it be too long before he starts signing his own?
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